Silver Lining
by PrincessTiva
Summary: "She didn't know much about him but she knew he needed his soul mate to come home." Tony is not the same after coming back from Israel without Ziva. When he finally reaches his breaking point, he confides in the only person who's willing to listen, Isabelle. Tiva. Post 11x02. Multi-Chapter.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I have a surpriseeeeee for you! A new fanfiction! :) Yeah I know, I have like three in progress ("Flash from the past", "Happy Endings Never End" and "Talk to me") buuuut this popped into my head and I couldn't stop myself from writing it down, so I thought I might as well share it with you guys ;)  
Summary: **"She didn't know much about him but she knew he needed his soul mate to come home." Tony is not the same after coming back from Israel without Ziva. When he finally reaches his breaking point, he confides in the only person who's willing to listen, Isabelle. Tiva. Post 11x02. Multi-Chapter.  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own NCIS or any of it's characters or storylines. Buuut I own Isabelle :)**  
The title is from the saying "Every cloud has a silver lining" and it means "to be optimistic, even in difficult times". :)  
And heeere's the first chapter (this will not be like "Our Summer"! No Daily-Update-Plan!) :)  
Please enjoy reading! :)**

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Tony DiNozzo walked along the floor of his apartment complex. It was late. Very late actually. He didn't exactly know how late. He wasn't sure of many things lately, time at night being one of them.

Not sleeping didn't require knowing the time. It was late. Period. He was tired and aching to get some sleep. However, he knew he wouldn't get sleep anytime soon.

The second he closed his eyes, he would see her face again, hear her voice and he'd be unable to reach her, causing his heart to shatter into a million pieces all over again.

But he was still kind of looking forward to at least laying down, perhaps watching a movie or something. "Mr. DiNozzo?", someone suddenly called. Tony turned around, his head pounding.

He hadn't slept in weeks, so the one glass of scotch at the bar after work hadn't exactly helped. He could handle a glass of scotch at any time. But combined with his lack of sleep – and heartache – it hadn't been his best idea.

He groaned as he spotted his new neighbor Isabelle Parker standing in her doorway. She was a nice girl, yes. She was eighteen, had dark brown hair that was about medium length and green eyes that usually sparkled with joy.

She'd moved in at the beginning of the summer and they'd talked a couple times. He'd even told her about Ziva and his feelings for her. And that he'd go and spend the summer with her.

Later he'd told her he would go and find Ziva, bring her back home. They'd talked about how he'd introduce Ziva to her and he'd been convinced they'd get along just fine.

After he'd come back from Israel though, he hadn't been the same. She'd tried to talk to him, saying she was worried about him but he hadn't been willing to talk to her.

She had started college two weeks ago, so he'd been hoping she would just drop the subject. Apparently though he'd been wrong. And right now, he didn't want to talk at all.

He considered to just walk through his door for a second but quickly let go of that thought. It wasn't fair on her. She was only trying to help after all. "Hey Isabelle", he said, trying to sound happy when in reality he was far from it.

"Are you okay?", she asked, taking a step closer to him. "Yeah, of course. Why wouldn't I be?", he replied, trying to sound convincing. It was hard. He wasn't even convinced himself.

"You're not and we both know it. I just want to make sure you're okay", she insisted. He sighed. "Not tonight, Isabelle", he said, his eyes fixed to the ground. From the corner of his eye he could see her bite her lip.

"Okay", she whispered, then turned around to leave him alone. She closed her door behind her quietly. Tony slammed his key into his lock and pushed the door open.

"Damn it", he cursed under his breath as he plopped down on the couch. He hadn't meant to hurt her. She was only trying to be nice and help him after all. And before he'd gone to Israel they had actually started to become friends.

However, his time in Israel had changed basically everything for him. His relationship with his co-workers and friends, Isabelle, hell even with his favorite bartender.

Because God, he'd been Ziva's favorite bartender too. He knew Isabelle didn't have any connection to Ziva and that the girl was just trying to help him. He couldn't blame her.

He knew he was a mess and he knew everyone could see it. But he couldn't bring himself to think more about Ziva than he already did, let alone talk about her.

Everything reminded him of her and he couldn't stop it. It was definitely not healthy. He'd turned into some sort of robot. He woke up after a sleepless night, went to work, buried himself in work, went home late, didn't sleep, repeat.

He wasn't even sure how long he'd be able to keep up this routine before he finally collapsed. Life just wasn't the same without Ziva. And what hurt the most was, that nobody would even say her name.

Nobody acknowledged her absence. So, he had nobody to talk to about her. Except for Isabelle who had literally offered to listen to him. He just wasn't sure whether he'd be able to talk about it.

He wasn't sure whether or not he'd break apart when he relived the memories. He wasn't sure whether his heart would be able to handle it. But then again, he would never find out if he didn't try.

He sighed and stood up from the couch again. It was time to face his demons. He couldn't keep everything buried forever. He grabbed his key and walked out of his apartment, locking the door behind him.

Slowly he made his way over to Isabelle's door and raised his hand to knock. He hesitated for a second but then convinced himself that this was a good idea. Just seconds later, the door swung open, revealing Isabelle.

"Mr. DiNozzo", she greeted, her green eyes reflecting her confusion. She studied his face closely and couldn't help but wonder what had made him come over. She'd tried to talk to him ever since he came back from his trip to Israel.

She knew he was sad and heartbroken and she'd just tried to help. However, he had kept pushing her away. So why was he here now? Had he changed his mind? Was he willing to talk about it and let her help him?

"I'm not fine", Tony blurted out without a second of hesitation. Her eyes widened and she smiled sadly. She hadn't expected him to be so open about it. Apparently though he'd reached his breaking point and just needed someone to talk to now.

She didn't even know him too well but she knew he just needed someone who'd listen to him. And she was willing to be that someone. Even if it meant not getting much sleep tonight. "Come in", Isabelle said, holding the door open for him.

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**A/N: Aaaand here it is! :) I know it's pretty short, but it's just an introduction :) The next ones will be longer! xx  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section! :) I loveee to hear what you guys have to say :) And I'm always open to any suggestions :)  
I'll try to update asap! :)  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Sooo, three days is not too bad, right? :) I wanted to update yesterday but the page was down :/  
Thank you so much for all the kind words, follows and favorites so far :) You rock!  
Apparently some of you were kind of confused as to who Isabelle is. I thought it was kiiiind of clear (at least for a start). She's 18, college student, Tony's new neighbor (since May), dark hair, green eyes ;) You'll get to know more about her as the story progresses, okay? :)  
Another thing: many many manyyyyy people said "OMG please don't make Tony have an affair or relationship with Isabelle". Well, um, this is a Tiva story, guys. !*SPOILER*! Tony's not stupid and Isabelle is only eighteen (!) AND you'll also see Ziva at some point :D  
Okay, aaaanyway, here's the new chapter :D  
Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

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**HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE BEST DAD IN THE UNIVERSE! xo  
**

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Isabelle watched as he sat down on her couch, a worried expression on her face. Whatever had happened to put him into this state of mind, it had definitely been something major.

"Would you like some coffee?", she offered and he nodded, a grateful smile grazing his lips. She quickly walked to the kitchen and brewed them each a cup of coffee.

They would sure as hell need it at this hour of the night. She walked back to the living room a couple minutes later and took a seat opposite him. Wordlessly she handed him the cup and took a sip from her own.

"Did I wake you up?", he asked after a moment of silence. She shook her head. "No. We talked in the hall like five minutes ago, right?", she told him, smiling softly.

"Well, I'm still sorry for bothering you. I'm sure you have to be at college in the morning", he said, not meeting her eyes. "It's fine, Mr. DiNozzo. I don't have classes tomorrow, anyway", she said, shrugging.

"Tony", he corrected. She looked at him confused. "Please call me Tony, not Mr. DiNozzo", he said and she smiled. "Okay", she said, taking another sip from her cup.

They sat there in silence for a few moments and Isabelle began to wonder why he'd come over. Was he not here to talk? Or did he just need some time to gather his thoughts?

She decided that it was better to wait for him to start speaking. She didn't want to push him. If he wasn't ready to talk, so be it. She would still sit here and wait until he was ready.

Because one thing was for sure: he needed someone to talk to. And maybe it was easier for him to talk to a person who wasn't involved in everything, someone he barely knew.

Sure, they'd talked a couple times at the beginning of the summer. But that didn't exactly classify them as friends. "I love her, you know", Tony suddenly blurted out. Isabelle looked up in surprise.

She hadn't expected him to start with something like that. "Ziva?", she asked, remembering the name he'd mentioned at the beginning of the summer. He nodded.

"What happened?", she questioned softly, not wanting to push him too far but trying to get him to talk. He shrugged, not meeting her eyes. She waited again, taking another sip of her coffee.

Suddenly his eyes shot up and he met hers. "Remember what I told you back in May?", he asked. She smiled. "Of course I do. You love her, you wanted to give it a shot and you planned to travel to Israel because she had invited you", she replied and watched as a faint smile crossed his face.

"Well, things kind of changed", he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "You got shot at and had to cancel your flight", she recalled. Again, Tony nodded. "But you still went to Israel, didn't you?", she asked.

"Yes", he said simply. She didn't say anything. She knew he'd continue when he was ready. There was no point in asking any further questions. "I spent months looking for her", he stated bitterly.

She wanted to ask why but bit her tongue. It was probably not for her to know, anyway. They were Federal Agents after all. It was probably a classified mission or something.

"She went off the grid, didn't want to be found", Tony answered her unspoken question and she frowned. What was this all about? "But I did. I found her. She..she wasn't the same person", he said, his voice breaking and his eyes glassy.

She could tell it was painful for him to relive these memories. She was conflicted. Should she stop him and change the topic? Or was it better for him to talk about it, get it off his chest? She studied his face carefully and settled for the second option.

He would stop when it got too much. There was no need for her to interfere. She wanted to ask what had changed but didn't dare to. He would tell her if he wanted to talk about it. And if he didn't, well he'd have his reasons.

"She felt like all the pain in her life was her fault. She felt like she was the center of it all. She said she didn't want to be the person she had become, said she needed a fresh start", Tony went on with his story.

Isabelle was confused but nodded anyway. Maybe she didn't need to understand. She just needed to be here and listen. "I supported her, told her I'd help her with that fresh start. And she let me. But then..my plan..it backfired", he said, a tear rolling down his cheek which he quickly wiped away.

"What do you mean, it backfired?", Isabelle asked carefully, afraid to ask the wrong thing. His eyes met hers again. "I told her I could change with her", he whispered, shrugging helplessly.

He looked like a scared child then and Isabelle wanted nothing more than to pull him into a hug. It always worked with her younger siblings. However, she knew it wouldn't work with an adult.

She noticed that his hands were shaking and carefully took his coffee cup from his hands, putting it down on the table in front of them. She put her own cup down, too and folded her hands in her lap.

"I was fighting for her, you know. And I told her that I was", he continued, one of his shaking hands rubbing over his face, trying to hide the tears. "But she..she said she needed to do it alone", he admitted, his voice failing him.

Isabelle watched as he broke down in front of her and had no idea what to do. How the hell did one comfort an adult who's heart had been broken by the love of his life? This wasn't something she could fix with a hug like she always did with her younger siblings. She had no idea how to help him. And truth be told, she had never felt so helpless in her entire life.

"We..we went to the airport together. And I-I kissed her. Right there on the tarmac. I just..kissed her", Tony admitted finally. "You never told anyone that you kissed her, right?", Isabelle asked, not fully aware that she'd asked that question out loud.

"No", he whispered. She nodded in understanding. "She made me get on that damn plane, anyway. Nothing I did or said changed her mind", he cried, his face now buried in his hands and sobs now racking his body.

Isabelle reached out carefully and touched his arm with her hand. She didn't say anything. Nothing she could possibly say would make it better. Instead she just let her hand rest on his forearm, her thumb rubbing in circles.

Eventually Tony lowered his hands and she pulled hers away. His eyes met hers. "I just want her to come back. I can't stop thinking about her. And I-I can't stop loving her. I'll always love her, always", he said and Isabelle smiled.

She had never seen someone as in love as Tony. Even though she'd never met her, Isabelle could just tell that Ziva was someone very very special. And it hurt her to see Tony so broken.

She couldn't fully understand what had went down in Israel but she knew one thing for sure, he needed his soul mate back. "Every cloud has a silver lining", she suddenly said, remembering a line from her literature class.

Tony smiled sadly. "I hope you're right. I just really, really hope she'll come back someday", he replied. "She will", she said, the certainty in her voice surprising not only him but herself as well.

"You're very smart for your age", Tony commented and she laughed. "So I've been told", she joked and for the first time in month, she actually witnessed him laughing as well.

"It's already closer to morning than night, anyway. Wanna tell me more about Ziva?", she suggested. A bright smile spread across his face. "You really want to hear more?", he asked, unable to keep the excitement from his voice.

"Yes. I'm a fan of good romance novels", she said and he laughed again. "Well, then, where do you want me to start?", he asked. She shrugged and her eyes twinkled when she replied in the most serious voice she could muster: "I think the beginning is always a good point to start at."

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**A/N: aww poor Tony :O Who wants to hug him? Raise your hand! :D  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section! :) LOVE to hear your thoughts :)  
So, the next chapter will obviously be Tony telling Isabelle stuff about his relationship with Ziva - aww!  
(In case you didn't see it, there's some stuff explained in the A/N at the top, so please make sure you read that ;D)  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**

P.S. Wanna join the party on facebook? :) It's "Princess Tiva" :)


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Heeeey there guys :) So, I'm not too bad with updating, right? :D I know you all loved the Daily-Update-Plan for "Our Summer" but I just can't do that anymore. I'm in my Senior Year in High School and I have so so sooo many important exams coming up. I can only update once in a while and not every day. But I think three times since Saturday is fairly okay, right? :D  
Sooo, here's the new chapter ;) Thank you to everyone who took the time to review so far and everyone who followed and favorited this story! :) Also, thank you to everyone who tweeted me or left a comment on my facebook page :) **(for your information: my twitter is PrincessCTiva, my instagram is carotheprincess, my tumblr is princessctiva and my Facebook is Princess Tiva ;D)  
**Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

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Tony took another sip of his coffee and then settled back on the couch. "It's a long story", he began, kind of unsure of how to approach the topic. His relationship had never been easy and sometimes even they didn't fully understand it.

So, how was he gonna tell their story to a person who hadn't even seen them together? "I have time", Isabelle assured him and he smiled. "It all started with 'having phone-sex?'", Tony recalled, chuckling at the memory.

Isabelle looked at him confused and slightly taken aback. "She walked into the room and I didn't notice her at first. I was kind of talking to myself", Tony started to explain. He didn't really want to go into detail about Kate right now, so he left that part out.

"When I noticed her, I pretended to press the end-call-button on the phone so she wouldn't think I was a weirdo talking to himself. I started to make up an excuse but she cut me off with 'having phone-sex?'", he went on.

Isabelle laughed. "Well, that's quite a story to tell", she commented and he nodded. "Yeah, our relationship has always been..special", he agreed, smiling. "So, she was your new co-worker?", Isabelle assumed.

"At first, no. But after about two weeks, yes. It's kind of difficult to explain", Tony replied and Isabelle nodded in understanding. "We went undercover a couple weeks after she joined the team. As husband and wife", Tony said and Isabelle grinned.

"You did?", she questioned, obviously very interested in the story. "Yeah. And we kissed", he recalled. Isabelle's eyes widened. "Seriously? You kissed? All those years ago, and you never got together?", she asked in disbelief.

Tony shrugged. "Not exactly", he admitted. Isabelle raised an eyebrow. She knew there was more to the story and she also knew that it was an important part of their relationship.

Perhaps if he told her, she would be able to understand his feelings for Ziva better. Maybe there was something they had both tried to forget. "What do you mean?", she demanded.

"Well, we did get together", he said sheepishly. The way he said it made Isabelle wonder whether it had been on more than one occasion. Perhaps it had been an on-again-off-again kind of relationship?

She looked at Tony in question, waiting for him to elaborate. "A couple times", he mumbled, confirming her suspicions. "Care to elaborate?", she asked carefully.

He bit his lip, obviously trying to find the right words. She leaned back against the couch, trying to make herself comfortable. She wasn't exactly tired but she wasn't one hundred percent fit either.

She would need to get more coffee soon. But for now, she'd let him talk. It was obviously important. The fact that it had been an on-again-off-again kind of thing definitely explained his heartbreak.

He had expected something more this time around, he'd been ready for a committed and stable relationship. But she had broken his heart by staying behind in Israel. Isabelle understood his behavior a lot better now.

But still, she wanted to hear the whole story. "The first time, we just gave in to the mutual attraction. That was when we were undercover", Tony admitted, pulling Isabelle from her thoughts.

"You were on a mission. Wasn't that, like, dangerous?", Isabelle asked. Tony shrugged: "We didn't exactly think about that." Isabelle smirked and nodded. She was sure as hell not gonna ask any further questions regarding this topic.

"Second time was when our boss was in Mexico for the summer. He quit, but he came back after the summer. Long story. Anyway, so Ziva and I spent the summer together. Not just because of the mutual physical attraction though. It was more. We just never admitted it out loud", Tony went on.

"So, you were dating that summer?", Isabelle asked. "Kind of, yes. We spent almost every night together, went out to dinner. I guess you could call that dating. We just never put a label on it", Tony clarified.

"Why did it end?", Isabelle questioned. "Our boss came back and he has these rules for his team. Number twelve is 'Never date a co-worker'. He takes the rules rather seriously, so we didn't wanna take any chances. We never talked about it, it just kind of ended", Tony explained.

He hated to think about that. Sometimes he wondered what would have happened if Gibbs hadn't come back. Perhaps they'd be married by now. He was sure they'd be dating though.

That summer had been the beginning of something. But they hadn't had the time to make more out of it. "Years later, I killed her boyfriend", Tony whispered, still not comfortable with the subject, even after all these years.

Isabelle gasped. "Why?", she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "He was playing her, he was dangerous. I went to her apartment to warn her but she wasn't there. Instead he was. He attacked me. I fought back. One thing led to another and suddenly I had shot him", he recalled, images of that fateful night running through his head.

He closed his eyes to regain control over his thoughts and suddenly he felt Isabelle's hand on his knee. "It's not your fault. He attacked you. What were you supposed to do?", she said softly.

However, her words didn't help in the slightest. Of course, she couldn't know. But those were the exact same words Tony had used when Ziva had questioned him about his motives for killing Rivkin.

'He attacked me, what was I supposed to do?', he'd told her. She'd pressed him down to the ground, her gun to his chest. He'd never seen her so furious before. It had been kind of frightening.

And it had been then, that he'd thought he'd never have a chance with her. She hated him in that moment. It was unmistakable. "Tony?", Isabelle asked softly, pulling him from his thoughts.

"Sorry, I just..that wasn't an easy time", Tony mumbled, running a hand over his face and through his hair. "It's okay. You don't have to talk about it", she assured him but he shook his head.

"No, I want to", he said firmly. Isabelle smiled at him and nodded. "She left NCIS and went back to Mossad. She was sent on a mission that summer and eventually our boss told us that the ship she'd been on sunk. There were no survivors", Tony said, his voice breaking.

Tears were now pooling in his eyes but he didn't bother to hide them. What did it matter anyway? It wasn't like Isabelle was gonna judge him. "Oh my God!", Isabelle exclaimed, covering her mouth with her hand.

"My life stopped. I..nothing made sense without her", Tony whispered, his voice laced with tears. "Eventually though we found out that she had been taken by terrorists. I wanted to get revenge for her death and went to Somalia with my co-worker and boss. McGee and I got captured on purpose, while our boss hid outside the camp. We were put in a room and the guy kept questioning us, or rather me. He wanted to know things about NCIS", Tony told her.

Isabelle's eyes were wide. She had obviously not expected something like this. But then again, it was far from normal. "He brought someone in and the person had a bag over their face. Saleem, that's the name of the terrorist, pulled the bag off and there she was. Ziva. Alive. Breathing", Tony said, his voice breaking and tears streaming down his face.

Isabelle reached out and rested her hand on his arm again. They were quiet for a while, his sobs being the only sound in the room. Isabelle's hand on his arm was oddly comforting and her thumb drew small circles.

"You rescued her, didn't you?", Isabelle asked after a while, her voice soft. Tony could only nod. The room was filled with silence again, before Tony spoke up: "She asked me why I had come. I-I told her I-I couldn't live..without her."

Isabelle smiled sadly. She had known that this was the reason he'd gone there. However, she hadn't expected to hear that he'd actually told Ziva about that reason.

"We went to Paris a couple months later. Another assignment", Tony said suddenly, changing the subject. Isabelle was confused for a second but quickly caught up.

He didn't want to talk about Somalia any longer. And she was okay with that. She was pretty sure he'd gotten the most important stuff off his shoulders. And that was what mattered, right?

"The city of love", she commented, smirking. He laughed. "Yeah, well, quite literally", he admitted, his eyes sparkling. "Let me guess, you kissed her?", Isabelle assumed and he nodded.

"Yeah, I kissed her. Nothing happened that night though. We just snuggled in bed, but we were both fully dressed", he told her. Isabelle smiled brightly. God, he genuinely loved Ziva.

"I think that night changed her, and our relationship. We learned to trust each other again", Tony said. "Well then why did you two never get together?", Isabelle questioned and Tony laughed.

"You should be an investigator! You always ask the right questions", he commented and Isabelle chuckled. "Well, who knows? Maybe after I finish college, I'll become a cop or an Agent?!", she joked and winked at him.

"To answer your question, Detective Isabelle, I don't know. I honestly don't know", Tony said, his tone light and joking as well. She grinned. It was good to see him kind of happy again.

"Various reasons. People interfering. Wrong timings. You know, stuff", Tony tried to explain. Isabelle nodded in understanding. Sometimes life just got in the way. Everyone knew that.

"We went to Berlin back in April and we shared quite a moment while slow-dancing", Tony said, a smile on his face. He loved that memory. That dance in Berlin had certainly been special.

"And then Israel", Isabelle assumed. "Yeah. I already told you all about that before I went there", he said and she nodded. "So, what happens now?", Isabelle asked, folding her hands in her lap.

"What do you mean?", he questioned, confused. "Well, what are you gonna do? You can't just let her go", she clarified. "There's nothing much I can do, Isabelle. I already tried", he said sadly, his gaze fixed on his fingers in his lap.

"Listen, I don't know a lot about you. But I know that you need her. So, maybe you should..call her or something", she suggested. Tony's eyes shot up. "You really think I should call her?", he questioned.

She nodded: "Why not? It's not like it'll hurt anyone." "It won't change anything though", he said, sounding defeated. "Okay, A- you don't know that, and B- at least you'll get to talk to her. Keeping in touch can be quite effective if you want her to come home eventually, after she's done with finding herself in Israel", Isabelle stated.

Tony sighed. "Maybe you're right", he admitted. "Maybe? I think I'm very right!", she insisted and he chuckled. "Lawyer would also be a good job for you", he commented and she laughed and punched him in the shoulder playfully.

"I'll make us some more coffee and you give her a call. How does that sound?", she suggested. "Sounds good", he agreed after a moment of consideration. She grinned brightly, then got up and walked over to the kitchen to make more coffee for them.

Tony took out his cell phone and stared at the screen. He took a deep breath, then dialed the very familiar number, praying she'd pick up.

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**A/N: So, what do you think about Isabelle? :) And do you think Ziva will pick up? :O :D  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section :) I love to read what you have to say and I'm always open to any suggestions :)  
I dunno when the next chapter will be up, since I'm rather busy tomorrow and it's my mom's birthday on Saturday. Perhaps Sunday? :)  
Until next time! :)  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:**** Hey everyone! :) I'm so sorry it took me so long to update this story! :( I had so much stuff to do with school and just..ugh! I hope you liked the drabbles though :) I'll probably continue that! It's a good way to give you at least some Tiva fluff a day even if I only have like 5 minutes on the bus or something :)**  
**Anyway, so here's the new chapter! :) And GOOD NEWS: I just finished the next two chapters and a half, so I'll be able to update tomorrow and Monday (definitely) perhaps even Tuesday :) YAY! **  
**Please enjoy reading! :)**_  
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_One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight. _"This is Ziva David. I am currently not able to answer your call but you can leave a message", Ziva's voice filled his ears.

Tony felt tears pooling in his eyes as he lowered the phone to his lap. He stared straight ahead, trying to keep the tears from falling. Isabelle walked back into the living room, carrying two cups of coffee.

"Did you even dial yet?", she asked, chuckling. However, when she saw the look on his face, she crouched down in front of him and tried to make her look at him. "Tony?", she asked carefully.

"She didn't pick up", he whispered, the tears now falling. Isabelle ran a hand over her face and sighed. God, this was more difficult than she'd thought. She'd been so sure that Ziva would pick up and talk to Tony and that it would make everything a little better.

Had she expected her to not pick up, she would have never told Tony to call her. She should have known though. From what he'd told her so far, it seemed like the situation was more than complicated.

"Perhaps she is just asleep", Isabelle mused but Tony shook his head. "It's the middle of the day there", he said bitterly. She looked at him sympathetically and touched his arm.

"Then maybe she changed her number?", she suggested. Tony's eyes snapped up and met hers. "You think?", he asked, his eyes suddenly focused. Isabelle shrugged.

"It's possible. I mean, she did move to another country after all", she stated. He nodded, lost in his thoughts. Isabelle handed him his cup of coffee and then sat down next to him again.

They were silent for a while, both taking sips from their coffee. Isabelle glanced at him from the side. She knew she needed to help him somehow but she wasn't sure whether he was ready to accept that help.

Sure, he'd come to her tonight. But what she had in mind would require a lot more courage than just knocking on a neighbor's door to talk. She took another sip from her coffee.

It was a possibility though. It might help him. So, she needed to at least tell him about it, right? And after she told him, he could decide whether he wanted to do it or not.

It was up to him. But he'd at least know about the possibility then. She nodded to herself and lowered her cup of coffee. "Listen, Tony, I have a suggestion for you. You might not like it but I just want you to know it's a possibility, okay?", she started carefully.

He turned to look at her and nodded, encouraging her to continue. She took a deep breath, then said: "There's this support group for men at church. Maybe that would be an..option for you. I mean, you don't have to join of course. But maybe it would be good for you to, you know, talk to other men about it, meet others."

She trailed off awkwardly, her gaze fixed on her cup of coffee. She didn't want to face him right now, fearing he was mad at her for even suggesting it. He was awfully silent and she was pretty sure he'd burst any second.

However, he surprised her. "When do they meet?", he asked softly. Her eyes snapped up and met his. "You..you wanna go?", she asked surprised and he nodded.

"I could at least go there and check it out, right?", he shrugged. She smiled at him. "Well, they actually meet tomorrow", she told him. "What kind of guys go there?", he asked.

"It's not the AA group if that's what you're asking. They meet on different days. From what I've heard, there are men from like 25 to 50. Most of them go there after a divorce or after losing a loved one", she said.

Again, he nodded. She didn't know what else to say, so she just took another sip of her coffee, trying to somehow distract herself from the faraway look on his face.

"Isabelle?", he suddenly asked, pulling her from her thoughts. She looked up at him again. "Yes?", she asked. "Do you think people will say it's weird? I mean..will people look at me differently?", he asked, sounding incredibly insecure.

Isabelle's heart broke for the man in front of her. He was in his forties and yet he looked like a scared little boy. And it was all because the love of his life had broken his heart, had left him.

She had always thought things like this only happened in the movies. A guy being so in love with a girl that it literally broke him apart when she rejected him. It had always seemed so unrealistic, so..well, movie-like.

But now here he was, proving her wrong. It did happen in real life. And still it was nothing like in the movies. Because, God, in the movies the reunion always seemed so easy.

The guy calls the girl or writes her a letter, she realizes she loves him after all, comes home and everything's fine. The thing was, that wasn't how it would work for Tony.

He needed to find his way back to her, taking the road with obstacles in the way. But she was willing to be there for him every step of the way. She was willing to do everything in her power to get that happy ending for him and Ziva. If anyone deserved it, it was him.

"You don't have to tell anyone", she said, shrugging. He bit his lip, obviously not satisfied with the answer. "I mean..if you want to, you can. But you don't have to. I wouldn't..at least not at first", she went on, trying to reassure him that it was a good idea to go to the support group.

"What if someone finds out though?", Tony questioned quietly. "Like who? Your friends? Your co-workers?", she asked and he nodded. "They're like your family. You said so yourself. Do you really think they'd see you differently? Family doesn't judge", she insisted.

He gulped audibly. "Tony, if anything, they will think you're incredibly strong. It takes a lot of bravery and courage to join a support group. I'm sure they'll see that. And I'm sure they won't judge you", she said softly.

"You're probably right", Tony said, smiling at her. "Of course I am", she chuckled. Tony glanced at his watch and sighed. "I guess I better get going. I need to take a shower before I go to work", he announced and she nodded.

He put his cup down on the table and headed for the front door of her apartment. Isabelle followed him and leaned against the door frame as he walked out. "Thanks again for, you know, listening", he said, smiling at her.

She smiled back at him and replied: "Don't mention it." He nodded, then turned around and walked towards his own apartment door. "Tony", Isabelle called after him. He stopped and turned around to face her. "Yeah?", he asked. "If you ever need to talk again..I'm here", she said, shrugging. He smiled: "I know."

* * *

**A/N: OMG ZIVA DIDN'T ANSWER :O But hey, Isabelle told him about the support group ;) (sound familiar? :D This is MY version of S11 after all :P)  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section! :) I loveee to hear from you guys! :) Especially after that long time..are you still reading?  
New chapter will be up tomorrow! :)  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: And as I promised, here's the new chapter :) WHOOO!  
Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

* * *

Two weeks later, Tony and Isabelle sat at Isabelle's kitchen table. Tony had met up with the priest earlier and had picked up breakfast on the way back home. He'd knocked on Isabelle's door, asking her whether she wanted some breakfast which she gladly accepted.

Since that night two weeks ago they'd become quite good friends and Tony really liked that. She was fun to be around and she was an incredible listener. He hadn't really had a friend outside of work in a couple years.

And he had to admit, it was quite nice to have Isabelle as a friend. She didn't know much about his work which was kind of a relief. That way he could just talk about other stuff with her, forget about the cases for a while.

She would tell him about college and he would share his memories of college with her. They'd even found out that they had a similar taste in movies which had led to a few movie nights.

So, today Tony had brought them both breakfast since he knew Isabelle didn't have much time before having to go to college. And it was his day off, so he'd just decided it'd be a nice thing to do.

Plus, he actually needed to talk to her about something. "So, how was the talk with the priest today?", Isabelle asked as she took a bite of her croissant. "It was actually really good.

I'm glad I decided to join the group", he admitted. At first, he'd been very skeptical, not really convinced that joining a support group was a good idea. However, it had turned out it wasn't too bad.

The other men were actually really nice and the priest always had good advice. Which had led to their early meeting today. Tony had just wanted to talk to the priest in private.

Not because he really needed to but because he had wanted to. And it had been nice. They'd talked about everything and nothing, really. "I'm glad", Isabelle said, smiling. They were silent as they each took a sip from their coffee.

"Isabelle?", Tony eventually asked, nervously fiddling with his croissant. "Yeah?", she replied, a bright smile on her face. "I've been meaning to talk to you about something", he said carefully.

"Sure. What is it?", she asked. "Remember when I told you, McGee and I kind of fought about who'd be in charge when Gibbs was gone for a while the other day?", he questioned and she nodded.

"I..I feel like he doesn't trust me anymore. And not just him but..everyone", Tony admitted, unable to meet Isabelle's eyes. "What do you mean, they don't trust you anymore?", she questioned, clearly confused.

"McGee kinda mentioned something like that", Tony mumbled. She was quiet, waiting for him to elaborate. "Ducky mentioned it two weeks ago", Tony went on. "Tony! Why do they not trust you anymore?", Isabelle demanded, annoyed by him talking around the point.

Tony sighed, then explained: "Ducky said I need to think about the people who are still here. The people who depend on me, as he put it. McGee said something similar the other day. He basically told me I couldn't be in charge because my loyalty isn't to this team anymore but to the one member who left. He.." Tony trailed off, unable to say the words that had hurt him so badly.

"What Tony?", Isabelle pressed. "He accused me of running off over the summer, said I missed everything, didn't help with any cases. And now that I'm back, according to McGee, I don't help much either because half my brain is still stuck in Israel", Tony admitted.

Isabelle furrowed her eyebrows. "He really said that?", she asked. She seriously hadn't seen that one coming. And truth be told, she couldn't understood McGee's reasoning in the slightest.

Wasn't it obvious that Tony was hurting but trying his best to work properly. Sure, it wasn't easy. But he was trying! "In a round-about-way, yes", Tony confirmed.

"So, he didn't say it directly", Isabelle stated. "Not directly, no. But it was pretty..obvious", Tony said bitterly. Isabelle nodded but didn't say anything. She knew there was more to it but she also knew that Tony would talk when he was ready, not when she pushed him into talking.

"It's still the same, you know. Nobody says her name. It's like..she's dead. It would be easier if they just acknowledged it but they just..they don't say anything", Tony blurted out, his hands clenching into fists on the table.

"Maybe they think it'd hurt you to hear her name too often", she mused. He shrugged. It was a possibility but it still didn't make the fact that everyone seemed to have lost trust in him okay.

As if reading his mind, Isabelle spoke up again: "I know you feel like they have lost trust in you. But I don't think they have. Look at it this way, Gibbs still trusts you, right? Otherwise he would have made you leave the team."

"I wasn't talking about Gibbs", Tony said bitterly. "No, but you and I both know that the others trust Gibbs' opinion. And they know he still trusts you. So, there's no reason for them not to trust you", Isabelle went on.

Just as Tony was about to reply, his cell phone rang. "I need to get this", he said, fishing the phone out of his pocket. Without checking the caller ID, he pressed the phone to his ear.

"DiNozzo", he said. "But..okay, yeah, I understand..of course..I'll be there as soon as I can", he said, making Isabelle wonder who he was talking to. Tony hung up and put the phone back into his pocket.

"That was Gibbs. He wants me at a crime scene as soon as possible", he sighed. "But it's your day off, isn't it?", Isabelle asked. He chuckled bitterly. "Yeah, well, that doesn't stop people from committing crimes", he said humorlessly.

She nodded and smiled at him sympathetically. "I can drive you there, if you want to. I need to go to college anyway", she offered. "And we'd safe our planet", she added, laughing.

He broke out into laughter as well. "Well, we need to safe our planet, don't we?", he said, agreeing to her offer. "Go get your stuff and I'll meet you downstairs", Isabelle said and Tony nodded.

He carried his plate and mug to the kitchen, then left her apartment to go get his stuff from his place. To be honest, he really appreciated Isabelle's offer. It meant they'd get to finish their conversation after all. And he really didn't mind car-pooling with his _friend_.

* * *

**A/N: I really love their friendship :) Do you?  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section! :)  
New chapter will be up...TOMORROW! :) YAAAY :)  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**

**P.S. If you have a minute, could you please read this and maybe share the link with friends, followers, etc? :) www [dotti ;D] gofundme [dooot] com [slash] 5jejik (take out spaces and insert dots and the slash ;D)**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Tadaaa! As promised, here's the new chapter :)  
Um..you might say "ugh why did she bring that up" after this chapter but yeah...please just trust me on this? :D  
Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

* * *

Isabelle hadn't expected Tony to show up at her door step that night. He'd sent her a text message at noon, saying the case was a mess and he wouldn't be able to make it to their planned movie night.

She'd told him it was okay and that they'd just watch the movie when the case was closed. However, now here he stood. It wasn't too late. And she didn't mind his company one bit.

She was just about to ask whether they'd watch the movie at her place or at his when she noticed the look on his face. "Wanna come in?", she asked, knowing he didn't come here for the movie but to talk.

He nodded gratefully. They sat down on her couch in silence. She knew he'd talk when he was ready. That was one thing she'd learned in the past month. She cherished their friendship and she was glad he seemed to be happy again.

Not fully happy but he was getting there. "I think Gibbs found a replacement for Ziva", Tony blurted out. It were the words Isabelle had feared ever since that night when he'd told her everything.

She knew it'd happen eventually but she also knew it'd break Tony apart. And now here he was, saying the words she'd feared for so long. She looked up at him, studying his face closely.

He was already starting to break apart. She knew how much he'd feared that day to come. Wordlessly, Isabelle reached out and touched his forearm. Any words would be out of place right now.

And resting her hand on his forearm was her way of showing him silent support. He knew that. "She worked with us today. Her name's Bishop and she's NSA Analyst", Tony told her.

Isabelle didn't say anything, knowing he wasn't finished yet. "She's fun but she..she's not Ziva", Tony said, his voice cracking at the last part. She could see tears running down his cheeks and suddenly felt as helpless as during that very first talk.

She wanted to do something to ease his pain but she knew there was nothing she could possibly say or do. "Are you sure Gibbs is gonna hire her?", Isabelle asked, not mentioning the words 'as Ziva's replacement' on purpose.

She knew he'd never see anyone as Ziva's replacement because in his eyes nobody could ever replace Ziva. He'd made that pretty clear during their talks in the past month.

"I saw him check her background and he found out she'd applied to NCIS five years ago. I mean, I'm not saying she doesn't deserve to get her dream job at NCIS, I just..I don't exactly want her to sit at that desk", Tony said.

Isabelle nodded in understanding. It was kind of reasonable after all. "Well, don't you think you'd get used to it? I mean, she's nothing like Ziva, right? So, she wouldn't be a replacement in any way. She'd just be there, helping you guys out", Isabelle tried.

"She likes to work on the floor. And she can't work without food", Tony stated out of nowhere. Isabelle raised her eyebrows. "Well, isn't it normal that people eat in order to not be starving when they work?", she questioned.

Tony chuckled. "Yeah, well, I meant she works with food. Like..she eats while she works and then years later she can tell you what she worked on by associating it with the food she ate while working on it", he explained.

"That's strange", Isabelle chuckled. "She is kinda quirky, yes", Tony agreed. They laughed and Isabelle dropped her hand from Tony's arm, sensing he was feeling better now.

"I knew he'd hire someone new at some point. I just..it doesn't make it any easier, you know", Tony eventually said. Isabelle smiled at him sympathetically. "I know", she assured him.

And that was that. They didn't need to go into detail. It was a silent understanding that passed between them. "I need to tell you something", Tony suddenly blurted out. Isabelle looked at him.

"Sure", she said, signaling for him to go ahead and say what he needed to say. "I..I've been..making up stories about..girls", he admitted quietly. She was stunned to say the least. She had no idea how to react, what to say.

"Today I..told everyone I met a girl at a bar last night and..you know. I had written a random number on a tennis ball and pretended she was a tennis player and had given me her number on one of her tennis balls", Tony blurted out, surprised at how easily the words stumbled out of his mouth.

"Last week I made up a story about a girl I'd met at another bar and even pretended I met her again the next day", he went on, unable to stop himself now. However, Isabelle did stop him: "Tony."

Her voice was firm and it made him shut his mouth immediately. He gulped audibly. "Why..would you do that?", Isabelle asked, clearly confused by his actions. He kind of felt bad for her.

She had no idea what type of guy he used to be. And honestly, he wasn't planning on telling her. And it had probably shocked her to say the least. She probably hadn't expected him to do something like that.

Well, neither had he. He'd never expected himself to be so desperate that he'd even make up stories about girls and write a random number on a freaking tennis ball to prove his story. It was ridiculous!

"I..I don't even know", Tony mumbled, ashamed of himself. He knew it was a stupid idea but he hadn't been able to stop himself. It had been so easy. And suddenly people had thought he was happy again, people had stopped looking at him weird. So, he'd continued.

"Is it because of..what the others said?", Isabelle asked carefully. Tony swallowed hard. God, was she able to read his thoughts? "If they think I'm seeing someone or just going out with girls..they'll think I'm moving on. And it worked. Nobody looks at me weird anymore. They respect me again, trust me again", Tony admitted.

Isabelle sighed and rested her hand on his arm again. "You shouldn't have to lie about your love life to get their trust and respect", she told him softly. "I know. But if that's the only way, I mean..", he started but she cut him off: "No, Tony. It's no option."

They were silent for a moment until Isabelle spoke up again: "What if Ziva comes back and hears you've been dating other women? How do you think she'll react?" Tony flinched.

"Exactly! She would think you moved on and she wouldn't even try to get you back. So, the question you have to ask yourself is whether this is really worth it", Isabelle told him.

He nodded. What she was saying made sense. "I know you can't undo the stuff you already said. But you can just stop talking about new women from now on", she suggested.

"That sounds like a plan", he said. She smiled at him and he smiled back at her. "So, you up for that movie?", Isabelle asked, changing the topic. He grinned brightly. "Absolutely!", he agreed.

* * *

**A/N: I know some of you might not like that I brought Bishop up in this story. BUT she's a fun person. Sure, the writers did a TERRIBLE job at writing Ziva off and Bishop in and NCIS is not the same without Ziva and with Bishop. But Emily Wickersham isn't a bad actress. She's very cool actually. And Bishop is a fun character. I think if she was on a different show, I'd totally watch it :D  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section! :)  
Also...I'm currently working on the new chapter but I can't promise an update for tomorrow. I'll try!  
MANY people asked when and if Ziva will appear. Here's your answer: SHE WILL and SOON!  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: BOOM! Daily Update much? :D This feels like "Our Summer" lol BUT I won't be able to keep it up, sorry ;)  
Sooo..many many manyy people asked when Ziva will appear :) AND she'll come into the story starting with this chapter :) YAY! :D  
Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

* * *

Isabelle sat on a bench in the park on campus, her laptop on her lap. It was a beautiful day in early May and she was enjoying the warm sunshine. She had some time off in between classes and had decided to spend it outside in the park.

She'd tried to call Tony and ask him whether he wanted to grab lunch with her but he hadn't answered. He was probably in the middle of a case and couldn't answer his phone. Which was fine. She understood.

Over the past months they'd become very close friends. And really, she enjoyed the time they spent together. He was a great friend. And it was actually cool to have a friend who was way older than she was.

He had life experience and was able to give incredible advice. And even now that she'd settled in at college and had found amazing new friends, she still made sure she spent at least two nights a week with Tony, watching a movie or just talking.

During the Holidays she'd urged Tony to call Ziva again but again she hadn't picked up. Tony hadn't been as devastated as he'd been the first time around. He'd said she _had_ probably changed her number after all and that he was sure she'd reach out to him when she was ready.

Isabelle admired his positivity. She wasn't sure whether she could have been that positive had the roles been reversed. Back in March, Tony had finally introduced Isabelle to the team.

Gibbs, McGee, Abby, Ducky, Palmer and even the new Agent, Bishop had been there and Isabelle loved them all. She'd even hung out with Ellie Bishop on several occasions.

She was a fun girl and since she wasn't much older than Isabelle, it was easy to be around her. They'd gone out a couple times, had a drink, went bowling. Typical stuff.

And ever since Isabelle had started to hang out with Ellie, Tony had started to like the new Agent more and more. He seemed to be rather comfortable with her presence now.

Sure, he still didn't like the fact that she was Ziva's so-called replacement but that was a whole different story. Isabelle opened the bag that was laying next to her and pulled out one of her books.

She flipped it open to start reading the passage she needed for her essay. Just as she was about to read the first sentence, her cell phone rang. She checked the caller ID and smiled. It was Ellie.

"Hey Ellie! What's up?", she greeted her friend. Maybe _she_ had time to grab lunch with her. "Isabelle! Thank God!", Ellie breathed. Isabelle furrowed her brows. Thank God? Had something happened?

"Is something wrong, Ellie?", she voiced her questions. "Tony..he..he's been shot", Ellie whispered. Isabelle gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. Tony had been..shot?

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry, Belle!", Ellie exclaimed. "I..is he gonna be okay?", Isabelle whispered. "They don't know. You should come to Bethesda. Like..now", Ellie told her softly.

Isabelle shut her laptop and pushed it off her lap. "I'll be there as soon as I can", she said, then hung up. She quickly stuffed everything into her bag and ran to the parking lot where she'd left her car that morning. She only hoped the DC traffic wouldn't be too bad and it wouldn't take her long to get there.

* * *

"Oh my God, Isabelle!", Ellie exclaimed as Isabelle ran through the doors of the hospital floor. Ellie immediately pulled her into a hug. "I'm so sorry", she whispered in Isabelle's ear.

"You have nothing to be sorry for, Ellie", Isabelle told her as she pulled back just enough to look her friend in the eyes. Tears were pooling in Ellie's eyes. "I'm his partner! I was supposed to have his back and _I failed_!", she said through gritted teeth, trying so very hard not to break down and cry.

"I'm sure it's not your fault", Isabelle tried to soothe her. Ellie sniffed loudly, making Isabelle pull her into a hug again. "Where is everyone?", Isabelle then asked.

"Gibbs is talking to the doctor and McGee is picking up the others from headquarters", Ellie explained. Isabelle nodded. "Any idea how he is?", she asked, clearly referring to Tony.

Ellie shook her head. Isabelle lead her over to the chairs in the waiting area wordlessly and they sat down. Ellie grabbed Isabelle's hand, clutching it tightly. "I'm scared", she admitted.

Isabelle swallowed hard, trying to get rid of the lump in her throat. "Me too", she whispered. The two women stared at the wall in front of them, both lost in their thoughts and hoping Gibbs would return with good news soon.

* * *

"Gibbs!", Isabelle explained as she saw him walk into the waiting area. He had a serious look on his face. Too serious for her liking. She felt Ellie clutching her hand tighter but didn't say anything about it.

It wasn't like she was going to deny her that silent physical comfort and support. "How is he?", Isabelle asked immediately. Gibbs pulled a chair over to where the two of them were sitting and sat in front of them.

He rested his elbows on his knees, leaning forward. "The bullet hit him in the chest, he has two broken ribs that are unfortunately very close to his lung. They put him in a medically induced coma. It..doesn't look good", Gibbs admitted.

Isabelle felt tears welling up in her eyes and she raised her hand to press it over her mouth. Ellie had ducked her head and tears were streaming down her face.

Isabelle hated that Ellie blamed herself but she had no idea how to convince her it wasn't her fault. She turned to face her and upon seeing her face simply pulled her into a hug.

God knows, she needed it too. Isabelle glanced at Gibbs who still had that look on his face. There was something he wasn't telling them, wasn't there? "It's all my fault", Ellie sobbed into her shoulder and Isabelle tightened her hold on her.

"Shh, no it's not your fault", she whispered to her friend. "_I_ am his partner and _I_ was supposed to have his back. _I failed!_", Ellie cried. Isabelle glanced at Gibbs again, silently begging him to say something.

"We were all there", he said bitterly. And it was then that Isabelle realized that God, he was blaming himself as well. "But I am his partner!", Ellie exclaimed, pulling away from Isabelle to look straight at Gibbs.

He didn't say anything though, just stared right back at her. "When she was still his partner, something like this never happened! Ziva would have had his back today. Had Ziva been his partner today he wouldn't have gotten shot!", Ellie stated, her voice rising with every word she said.

Isabelle was stunned to say the least. She hadn't known that Ellie thought that much about Ziva. Did Tony still make her feel unwelcome? Or was it just because she _knew_?

"Don't even go there. Tony and Ziva were extraordinary partners. Nothing could ever compare to that. And we all know it wasn't just because of the time they spent working together", Gibbs said sternly.

They were silent, neither daring to say a word. What Gibbs had said was true. Tony and Ziva's partnership couldn't be compared to any other partnership. Ever.

"If Ziva had been his partner today, she'd be the one laying there right now", Gibbs eventually mumbled. Ellie's eyes widened and Isabelle squeezed her eyes shut.

From what Tony had told her, Gibbs' statement was true. Ziva would have done anything to protect Tony, even if it meant taking a bullet for him. It was Isabelle who broke the silence first: "Can I go see him?"

Gibbs nodded at her and Ellie squeezed her hand. "You go first. I'll wait for the others. They're more like..his family. So, I want them to, you know, go before I do", she said softly and Isabelle furrowed her brows at her friend.

She needed to stop blaming herself and seeing herself as the odd one out. But right now wasn't the time to discuss it. So, she simply nodded at Ellie and Gibbs and then headed down the corridor.

"Room 145", Gibbs called after her. God, she hadn't even realized that she hadn't asked for the room number. Her mind was set on one thing and one thing only. And it wasn't just Tony.

* * *

Isabelle walked into Tony's room slowly and gasped as she saw all the machines attached to his body. She covered her mouth with her hand as she carefully approached his bed.

She sat down on the chair next to his bed and her hand found his, gently drawing patterns on it with her thumb. Some might say it was an intimate gesture but to her it wasn't. It was just a form of silent support. She was here. And she wasn't gonna leave him alone in this.

"You know they say he can hear you if you talk to him", Gibbs' voice suddenly interrupted her thoughts. She turned her head around and looked at Gibbs who was standing in the door frame.

It would have been pointless to ask how he'd gotten here so far and why, so she didn't. "What are you not telling me?", she instead asked. Gibbs chuckled. "He's right, you know. You would make a good Agent", he commented.

Isabelle stared at him, not blinking for even a second. She needed to hear the answer to her question. Gibbs sighed and pulled another chair over to where she was sitting.

"Before he blacked out, he told me something", he said. Isabelle nodded, urging him to continue. "He was pretty out of it though, so he was talking nonsense. He said you'd understand though", he went on.

Isabelle rolled her eyes. "Just tell me already", she demanded. Gibbs nodded, then said: "He said – and I quote – 'Tell Belle she needs her Tink Powers to go get her. I need her'."

A chuckle escaped Isabelle's lips and at the same time, tears were falling from her eyes. Ever since they'd discovered their mutual love for movies, Tony had started to call her Belle referring to Tinker Bell, spelling it with an 'e' at the end in reference to Belle from "Beauty and the Beast" though.

It was ridiculous but extremely funny. At some point he'd told her she was lucky to have her "Tink Powers", as he called them. That way she could travel the world.

It had been late at night and truth be told, silly comes after tired. And well, Tony had been right. She knew what Gibbs was talking about now. "Do you know what that means?", Gibbs asked impatiently.

He was obviously more than worried about Tony. Isabelle nodded and glanced at Tony. He looked so peaceful, yet like he was in a lot of pain. Not only physically.

She didn't know much about him but she knew he needed his soul mate to come home. "Do you think you can arrange a flight for me?", Isabelle asked, never taking her eyes off Tony.

She could feel Gibbs' surprised stare on her and eventually turned around to meet his eyes. "Where to?", he asked, his eyebrow raised. Isabelle didn't even hesitate a second when she replied: "Israel."

A look of understanding flashed across Gibbs' face. "One hour", he said, and without saying another word, left the room. Isabelle took a deep breath and squeezed Tony's hand.

She leaned closer and whispered: "Don't worry, Tony. It'll be okay. I know you need your soul mate and I'm going to bring her home for you."

* * *

**A/N: Okay...so you're either gonna love me for saying Ziva will come home or (and that's more likely) kill me because Tony got shot AND Ellie and Isabelle get along.  
**But let me say one thing about Ellie: I know everyone's kinda skeptical about Bishop. So, I haven't watched any episode after 11x02. I have NO idea what Ellie Bishop is like. I heard stuff about her on tumblr and stuff (like..she's quirky, she associates everything with food, she works on the floor, and stuff like that) but apart from that, I decided to kind of write Ellie the way I think she could be like. Like, we don't have to hate her, you know. And there will also be a solution for the Ziva/Bishop thing at the end! :) So, please just give it a shot?! I know what it's like and I MISS COTE AND ZIVA TOO! But Ellie fit perfectly here (with my character description). Abby would've been too old for Isabelle..kind of. So, it had to be another female of the team and that just happened to be Ellie. I don't call her Bishop on purpose. On the show, she's Bishop. Here, she's Ellie. Okay? :)**  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section! :)  
I'm not sure when I'll be able to update but you know I always give my best to update ASAP! :) xo  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Okay, so I couldn't resist... :D Here's the next chapter ;) (Look what this story is doing to meeeee! I'm back to Daily Updates even when I vowed to myself I'd NEVER do that again :D)  
And...someone will...make an..appearance?! :D (you're gonna hate me for the first paragraph, then you're gonna have mixed feelings about the second one but I hope the third one will make up for everything :D)  
Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

* * *

Isabelle got off the plane in Tel Aviv, her heart pounding. Gibbs had arranged the flight for her and had also told her that people close to Ziva would pick her up at the airport and help her find her.

She looked around. She had no idea what the names of those people were or what they looked like. But she assumed they'd know her. She was proven right when a tall man approached her.

He had dark hair and dark eyes. And to be honest, she didn't know whether she should like him or be afraid of him. He approached her slowly and eventually smiled at her.

"Isabelle Parker?", he asked with a heavy accent. She nodded and extended her hand for him to shake. "My name is Adam Eshel. Agent Gibbs called me and informed me. You are here to talk to Ziva David, is that correct?", he asked.

"To talk to her and bring her home", Isabelle corrected. Adam nodded. "We do not know where Ziva is but ever since Agent Gibbs called, we are working on it. We believe that with your assistance we will be able to find her", he said.

Isabelle furrowed her eyebrows. Had nobody told him that she wasn't an Agent? "Um..I actually don't know her. We've never met", Isabelle stated awkwardly. When Adam didn't say anything, she continued: "And I'm not an Agent either. I'm a close friend of Tony DiNozzo, maybe you know him. He..lets just say, he needs Ziva right now."

"Is Agent DiNozzo okay?", Adam asked, seeming to be genuinely concerned. Isabelle lowered her gaze to the floor. "We don't know yet", she whispered. For a moment, they were completely silent.

Eventually though, Adam reached out and took her suitcase from her. "I will take you to headquarters and I promise you, we will find her", he said, his voice firm.

Isabelle nodded and followed him to the car parked at the other end of the airstrip. She really hoped he was right and they'd find Ziva as soon as possible.

* * *

They reached headquarters after a quarter of an hour and Isabelle was impressed by the building in front of her. Wordlessly she followed Adam to the entrance.

A security guard stopped her from entering and Isabelle's eyes widened. Well, the security guards in America were nothing compared to that guy. She swallowed hard and quickly glanced at Adam.

He snapped something in Hebrew at the guard who ducked his head and let Isabelle pass. She walked faster to get next to Adam. "What did you tell him?", she wanted to know. Adam chuckled.

"I told him you were the Director's guest. He could not argue with that", he explained and Isabelle bit her lip to stop herself from laughing. So, she was the guest of the Director of Mossad. Right.

"You know, your friend Tony DiNozzo..he actually does not like me at all", Adam suddenly said, catching Isabelle completely off-guard. Tony didn't like him? Well, he had to have a good reason, right? Was this guy not trust-worthy?

But then again, Gibbs had sent him to come and pick her up. And he wouldn't send someone who wasn't trust-worthy, right? "Why?", Isabelle asked before she was able to stop herself.

"He does not like any man who gets too close to Ziva. And I got far too close", he explained and Isabelle shuddered. Too much information. Just as she was about to say something else, they came to a stop in front of a door.

Adam knocked and then walked in. "Ah, Isabelle Parker, I assume?", a lady said, standing up from her chair to shake Isabelle's hand. She had dark brown hair and brown eyes and her smile was actually quite genuine and friendly.

Isabelle smiled at her and nodded. "I am Director Orli Elbaz, it is a pleasure to meet you", the woman said. "Likewise", Isabelle said. She snapped at Adam but Isabelle couldn't understand what she was saying.

However, he walked out of the room again, not even meeting her eyes. Tony had been right about the guy. She didn't like him either. "Please take a seat, Miss Parker", the Director said and Isabelle sat down on a chair in front of her desk.

"I just got off the phone with Agent Gibbs and he told me everything. I hope Agent DiNozzo makes a full recovery", she went on. "Thank you", Isabelle whispered.

"You are here to bring Ziva home, correct?", the Director asked and Isabelle nodded. "Very well then. While you were on the plane, my people have been able to track her down. We believe she is currently at this address", the Director said, pushing a folder across the table towards Isabelle.

She took it and carefully opened it. At the very top of the page was a photo of Ziva. She looked beautiful. Sure, Tony had shown her a couple pictures but those were from years ago.

However, Tony had not exaggerated when he'd told her about how beautiful Ziva was. It was true. She was stunning. Isabelle's eyes scanned the page and eventually settled on the middle of the page.

An address was marked in red and someone had scribbled a note right next to it. It wasn't in English, so Isabelle had no idea what it meant. She assumed it was something about this being Ziva's current location though.

"I am going to have two of my best Agents escort you to the house", the Director said but Isabelle immediately shook her head. "No, I wanna go there myself", she insisted.

"Miss Parker, maybe you do not understand what kind of territory you are on here but..", the Director started but Isabelle cut her off: "I understand that Israel can be dangerous. And I wasn't saying I'd like to drive there alone. I would appreciate it if someone from your Agency could drive me there. But I would like to talk to Ziva alone and I don't wish for anyone to wait outside either."

The Director looked at her for a second but eventually nodded. "Very well then, Miss Parker. I will have a driver ready for you in two minutes. My secretary will escort you to the car", she said and Isabelle smiled.

"Thank you, Director", she said politely, then got up from her chair and headed for the door, the folder safely tucked under her arm.

* * *

Isabelle stood in front of the house, taking a deep breath. This was it. The driver had dropped her off around the corner seeing as she'd insisted on walking the last bit.

The house was a beautiful old country house and she was pretty sure it was the one Tony had mentioned when he'd talked about his summer with Ziva. Isabelle slowly approached the door and tightened her hold on the folder she was still carrying.

She didn't exactly have time to take care of her luggage, so she'd asked the Director if it was possible that someone brought it to a hotel. All Isabelle had taken with her were her cell phone, her purse and the folder the Director had given to her.

She took a deep breath and finally knocked on the door. Nothing happened. She hated to knock twice on people's door. To her it was incredibly rude. But this was an emergency, right? And desperate times called for desperate measures.

So, she raised her hand and knocked again. She held her breath as foot steps sounded from the other side of the door. Eventually it swung open, revealing a beautiful woman with sun-bleached brown curly hair and sparkling brown eyes.

It was _her_. _Ziva_. "Who are you? What do you want?", Ziva asked. Isabelle took a deep breath, then blurted out: "My name is Isabelle Parker and I'm here to bring you home to DC."

* * *

**A/N: Zivaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! *insert heart that FFN won't let me do*  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section :)  
Okay, so actually I don't think I'll have muuuuch time tomorrow. So, I think I'll update..Friday? :D  
Thank you for all of your amazing reviews, follows, favorites, tweets and comments! You always make my day :) xo  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: hahahahahahahahaha I couldn't resist lol Oh GOD, look what this story is doing to me :'D  
Thank you so so much for 100 reviews! I LOVE YOU GUUUUUUYS xo  
So...um...yeah haha here's the new chapter LOL  
Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

* * *

"I do not even know you and yet you want me to come with you?", Ziva demanded. Isabelle ducked her head. She really hadn't expected Ziva to be so cold to her.

But then again, she would have probably reacted the exact same way if a stranger suddenly stood in front of her door, asking her to come with them. "Tony, he..", Isabelle started but Ziva cut her off by holding her hand up.

Ziva stared at her, eyes narrowed. Isabelle felt more and more uncomfortable as Ziva looked her up and down. "I am not talking to you", Ziva suddenly snapped, then turned around to walk back inside.

However, Isabelle managed to catch her wrist to stop her. "No, please listen to me. It's important", she begged. Ziva didn't even look at her when she quietly asked: "Are you his girlfriend?"

Isabelle gasped and immediately realized her mistake. She should have said she was his friend right away. Of course Ziva would assume Tony moved on. But then again, it was rather ridiculous to think his girlfriend would randomly show up in Israel.

Isabelle tightened her hold on Ziva's wrist. "I'm his neighbor and friend. But we're definitely not together, nor have we ever been", she said softly. At that, Ziva turned back around to face her.

"You're his type", she said under her breath and Isabelle chuckled. "I really don't think so. I'm only eighteen. Plus, I think..you're more his type", she replied, winking at Ziva who blushed.

They were silent for a moment until Ziva eventually spoke up: "Why are you here?" Isabelle gulped. That was the part she hadn't been looking forward to. "I think it would be better if we..sat down first", she whispered.

She could feel Ziva's stare on her but didn't meet her eyes. Wordlessly Ziva opened the door wider and stepped aside to let Isabelle walk in. She led her over to the couch where they sat down.

Isabelle tucked her feet under her and let the folder she was still carrying fall to the floor. Ziva sat down on the other side of the couch, her arm draped over the back of the couch.

"Cough it out", Ziva said. Isabelle furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. Cough it out? What was that supposed to mean? And then it hit her. The 'Zivaisms' Tony had been talking about.

"Um..I think you mean spit it out", Isabelle said carefully. Ziva looked confused for a second but then nodded: "That too." Isabelle bit her lip to stop herself from laughing.

"What did you want to talk about?", Ziva asked, bringing Isabelle back to reality. Her face fell. God, how was she gonna tell her? "I need to know something first. Do you still love him?", she eventually asked.

Ziva stared at her like she had at least three heads. "Of course I do", she then whispered, ducking her head. Isabelle wanted to ask why she'd made him leave, why she hadn't returned his calls, why she hadn't contacted him.

But right now that wasn't the top priority. They didn't have much time. Just as Isabelle was about to say something else though, her cell phone rang. She quickly pulled it from her pocket and her heart sank when she saw the caller ID. It was Gibbs.

"I-I gotta take this", Isabelle stuttered. "Who is it?", Ziva asked. Wordlessly Isabelle flashed her the caller ID and Ziva's face fell. "Please do not tell him I am with you. Not yet", Ziva begged.

Isabelle was confused but nodded anyway. She needed to be on her good side in order to bring her home. She answered the call but before she could say anything, Gibbs' voice filled her ears: "Did you find her yet?"

Isabelle gazed at Ziva, then said: "No but I'm doing my best." She heard Gibbs sigh. "You gotta give more than just your best. It really doesn't look good", he said.

Isabelle closed her eyes and turned away from Ziva to hide the tears pooling in her eyes. "I'm trying, Gibbs. I really am", she whispered, her voice cracking. "I know. Listen, I arranged a flight that leaves in three hours. If you can't find her by then you're gonna have to come home alone. At least you should be here for him", Gibbs told her.

"Okay", Isabelle said, trying to make her voice sound strong. "See you tomorrow morning", Gibbs said, then hung up. Isabelle lowered the cell phone to her lap and took a shuddering breath.

Sure, she'd assumed it still didn't look good but having it confirmed made it ten times worse. Suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder. "Will you please tell me what is going on?", Ziva asked softly.

Isabelle turned around again and bit her lip, trying to keep the tears at bay. She took a deep breath, then blurted out: "Tony was shot yesterday." Ziva gasped and it literally felt like the world stopped in that second.

She knew she shouldn't have let him go. It had been a mistake all along. She couldn't stop the tears from falling and didn't even bother to wipe them away. "How bad?", she managed to ask.

"It doesn't look good", Isabelle admitted, tears now rolling down her cheeks as well. Ziva nodded, trying to comprehend what Isabelle was saying. "Look, I know this is a lot to take in right now. But we don't have much time. Gibbs just called me and said he arranged a flight that leaves in three hours", Isabelle said, touching Ziva's arm.

Ziva covered her hand with her own. "Why..did you come here?", she repeated her question from earlier. Isabelle looked at her confused. Wasn't it obvious why she was here? She'd just told her, hadn't she?

"Because he's fighting for his life and he_ needs_ you. He can't live without you", Isabelle said softly. More tears fell from Ziva's eyes as a strangled sob escaped her lips.

Before Isabelle was able to ask whether she'd said something wrong though, Ziva's arms were around her and she'd pulled her into a tight hug. "Does this mean you'll come with me?", Isabelle asked eventually.

Ziva pulled away to look into her eyes and smiled through her tears. And then she said the words that Isabelle would forever remember: "Yes, I will come home to DC with you."

* * *

**A/N: Zivaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa is coming homeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! :D  
Okay, so I'm still laughing because I said I wouldn't update daily and now I've been updating daily for like six days :'D And I said I would definitely not be able to update today and now I did LOL THIS STORY IS TAKING OVER MY LIIIIIFE :O :D  
Anyway, please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section :) Looooove to hear from you xo :)  
So...I was gonna say "I'll probs don't update till Saturday" but I guess if I said that you'd all die of laughter, right? :D Okay, so I'll update when I can?! :D  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**

P.S. About this chapter: I know it's short and stuff but I just didn't feel like having them talk tooooo much (that'll happen on the plane perhaps though I'm not sure whether there'll be a plane scene) and I didn't feel like explaining the setting too much because I think you guys can imagine it quite vividly, right? :D


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: I told you I wouldn't be able to update on Friday. Soooo...don't hate me :D But, here's the new chapter :))  
Thank you so much for all your lovely reviews, follows, favorites, tweets and comments! :) xo You seriously make my day every single time :)  
Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

* * *

Isabelle gazed at Ziva from the side. They were currently on the plane back to DC and Ziva was staring out the window, looking at the dark night sky. There were so many questions Isabelle wanted to ask her but she didn't know whether they'd be appropriate, whether she was in the position to ask questions.

She probably wasn't. Isabelle sighed and settled her gaze back on the newspaper in her hands. It was from two days ago but she didn't exactly care. She wasn't paying attention to it anyway.

She was worried about Tony and she was worried about Ziva. Sure, she had only met Ziva in person five hours ago but somehow she'd already grown on her. Isabelle didn't want her to get hurt.

She knew there was a possibility of the others reacting badly. And even though she hated to admit it, she also knew that there was a chance Tony wouldn't wake up or have amnesia.

She wasn't even sure which would be worse. But she knew one thing for sure, it would break Ziva's heart. She was coming home for Tony after all. So, it would definitely have great impact on her if Tony didn't make a full recovery.

Suddenly Ziva cleared her throat, pulling Isabelle from her thoughts. She lowered the newspaper and looked at Ziva. For a moment, they didn't say anything. It was Isabelle who broke the silence first: "I know I probably don't have the right to ask but..how are you feeling? Going home, I mean."

Ziva sighed and folded her hands in her lap. "It is strange. On the one hand, I am happy but on the other hand, I am also worried", Ziva admitted. "What are you worried about?", Isabelle asked, curiosity getting the best of her.

"Many things. Tony's reaction. The team's reaction. Whether I'm ready or not", Ziva said, not meeting Isabelle's eyes. "If it helps..you really don't have to worry about Tony's reaction", Isabelle said softly, smiling at Ziva.

She smiled back at her. "How is he?", she eventually whispered. Isabelle took a deep breath. That was a tough question. Seriously. "Well, at the moment, not well I suppose", she started. Ziva chuckled.

"That is quite obvious. I meant the past year", she clarified. Isabelle knew what Ziva had been talking about. But it still wasn't easy to talk about it. "When he came back from Israel in September he was pretty shaken up. He was barely holding up, you know. He..drank a lot, I think. I often heard him coming home in the middle of the night. He was in a pretty bad shape", she admitted.

Ziva took a shuddering breath and nodded. "Eventually he knocked on my door and we spent an entire night just talking. He was so broken. I had no idea what I was supposed to do, so I just listened", Isabelle continued.

When Ziva didn't say anything, she went on: "I told him to call you..but you didn't pick up." She bit her lip. Had she said too much? Had she hit a sour spot? But Ziva simply nodded.

"I changed my number. I know I should have contacted him but I..could not", she stated, her voice cracking. "Why?", Isabelle immediately asked, her brow furrowed.

"I had sent him away. I thought he hated me", Ziva whispered. Isabelle was pretty sure she could see tears pooling in Ziva's eyes but she didn't say anything about it. Instead she carefully rested her hand on Ziva's arm.

"He didn't hate you at all", she assured her. "If anything, he hated himself. He said he should have tried harder, should have fought for you", she then added. Ziva shook her head.

"He should not be blaming himself. He did nothing wrong", she insisted bitterly. Isabelle smiled faintly. "He loves you", she said, shrugging. Ziva sighed: "I know."

They were silent again, both lost in their thoughts. Eventually Ziva spoke up: "Is he better now?" Isabelle smiled at her and nodded. "He is. I think talking helped him a lot. And he didn't just talk to me, as far as I'm concerned. He still misses you though. He's still waiting for the day when you'll finally come home. He's madly in love with you", she said, chuckling at the end.

Ziva blushed but chuckled as well. "He actually started being nice to the new girl as well. I told him it wouldn't make sense to hate her. I mean, sure, he loves you and misses you but that's no reason to hate someone else", Isabelle blurted out.

Upon seeing the look on Ziva's face though, she wished she'd just kept her mouth shut. "The new girl?", Ziva repeated in a very small voice. Isabelle squeezed her eyes shut and bit her lip.

"Yeah. The new Agent", she explained. A sigh of relief escaped Ziva's lips and Isabelle looked at her confused. Now she was happy? And then it hit her. Ziva hadn't been worried about a new Agent but a new girlfriend.

"Her name's Ellie Bishop. She's in her early twenties, kinda quirky, married and super fun to hang out with", Isabelle specified. Ziva smiled brightly. "Sounds like she is a friend of yours", she commented and Isabelle nodded.

Ziva looked like she wanted to say something else but didn't. Isabelle was pretty sure she knew what was on her mind though. So, she answered the unspoken question: "He hasn't been dating anyone since he came back."

Ziva's eyes met Isabelle's. "He has not?", she asked in disbelief. Isabelle shook her head. "Are you sure you two never..?", Ziva started to ask but Isabelle cut her off: "No way! He's like so old! And he's in love with you. Ugh, oh God, please just don't go there."

"Okay, forget I asked", Ziva laughed, holding her hands up in mock-surrender. Isabelle chuckled. "I am absolutely one hundred percent sure he hasn't been dating anyone nor has he brought a girl home or spent a night away from home", she then told Ziva who sighed in relief.

"He's just waiting for you", Isabelle added, winking at Ziva. "I know", Ziva whispered. She just hoped he'd hang in there just a while longer, until she finally, finally came home to him.

* * *

**A/N: Soooooooooooooooo close to finally being homeeeeeeee!  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section :) LOVE to hear your thoughts :) xo  
Sooo...I hope I'll get the next chapter up tomorrow but I'm not entirely sure :/ We'll see ;)  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Guuuuuuuuuuuys I managed to update :)) YAY! :D  
Thank you so muuuuuuuuch for your incredible support! I LOVE YOU xo  
Um..you might need kleenex for this one... :D  
Please enjoy reading! :)**

* * *

"Ziver", Gibbs' voice cut through the noise at the airport and Ziva spun around, gasping as she spotted him. A lump formed in her throat and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get rid of it.

Her legs were shaking as she made her way through the crowd. Isabelle walked next to her and squeezed her hand reassuringly. "It's gonna be okay", she whispered to her, a huge smile on her face.

Ziva took a deep breath and nodded. As they finally reached Gibbs, Ziva quickly covered her mouth with her hand, trying to keep the tears at bay. However Gibbs didn't say anything but simply pulled her into a hug, kissing the top of her head.

She wrapped her arms around his middle, finding comfort in his embrace. "Gibbs, I..", Ziva started, her voice muffled by his shirt. She could feel him shake his head. "Later, kid", he whispered in her ear.

She pulled away and nodded. "How is Tony?", Isabelle asked and Ziva held her breath in fear of Gibbs' answer. "He's a fighter", Gibbs stated simply. Ziva chuckled sadly. "He is", she whispered to nobody in particular.

Gibbs took Isabelle's and Ziva's suitcases and offered his arm to Ziva. She smiled softly and linked her arm through his. "I'll take you to him, Ziva. Don't you worry", he whispered to her and she smiled. Yeah, it was good to be home.

* * *

Ziva took a deep breath as she walked through the door to Tony's hospital room. Isabelle had insisted that Ziva should go first. "That's why I brought you here", she'd said.

To be honest, Ziva really liked her. Sure, she'd been kind of worried about her status with Tony at first but once they'd cleared that up..well, she was kinda nice. Ziva turned around and stopped dead in her tracks.

There he was. _Tony_. She could no longer fight it. The tears started flowing down her cheeks and she didn't even bother to wipe them away. Slowly she made her way over to his bed and a strangled sob escaped her lips as she saw the countless machines connected to his body.

She sat down on the chair next to his bed and reached out to grab his hand. She closed both her hands around his and gently pulled it closer to her. "Oh Tony", she whispered through her tears.

Ziva just sat there for a while, trying to calm herself down. Which wasn't exactly working. At all. She raised one of her hands and gently brushed a strand of hair from his face.

He looked so peaceful, yet she knew he probably wasn't. "I am so sorry", she whispered, more tears escaping her eyes. She leaned closer to him and pressed her lips to his forehead, lingering there for a moment.

"I should not have sent you away. And I should not have broken off contact with you", she said quietly. She'd once read that people in a coma could still hear people talking to them. And even if he couldn't hear her, she needed to get this out.

"It was not easy for me either. I wish things could have been different", she stated sadly, running her fingers through his hair. "If only you had not been attacked in your apartment. You would have gotten to Israel in time, I would not have had time to talk to her. Things..would have been different", she went on.

She wasn't sure whether things would have really been different. Eventually the ghosts from her past would have gotten to her. But talking to _her_ – she would _not_ mention her name, never again – had made things worse.

"We would have spent the summer in Israel. I would have taken you to every place I ended up visiting alone. Eventually McGee would have called us and we would have gone back to Washington. Together", she mused.

Maybe it would have been like that. Maybe not. She couldn't know. She'd never know. "I am sure that after our summer together, I would have told you how I felt", she whispered, her thumb drawing circles on the back of his hand.

"I still feel the same way, Tony", she then added. "I never wanted to let you go. It was not easy for me either. But I had to do this. For me. For _us_. I needed to get my life back on track", she tried to justify her actions.

God, she'd screwed up. She knew that now. To be honest, she'd known all along. Ziva reached up again to run her hand through his hair. Carefully she leaned closer to him until they were face-to-face.

She closed her eyes and breathed in his scent. God, how she'd missed him. "I am so sorry, Tony. So sorry", she said under her breath. What if she never got the chance to tell him while he was conscious?

What if she never got the chance to actually_ be_ with him? "I need you, Tony", she whispered, her lips only inches from his. "Please, you have to wake up. I..cannot..I..", she started but her voice cracked.

Fresh tears spilled from her eyes. "I cannot live without you either", she eventually breathed. And it was then that she couldn't take it anymore. She slumped back into her chair and buried her face in the duvet of his bed.

"I love you", she whispered over and over again. Suddenly she felt a pressure on her hand that was still holding his. She thought she'd imagined it and simply continued to cry into the duvet.

The pressure fainted but returned after a few seconds. Ziva slowly lifted her head off the bed and carefully glanced up at him. His eyes were still closed. She sighed.

Yeah, as if he'd wake up the second she got there. She looked at their hands and smiled softly. It reminded her a lot of the car ride after they'd come back from Berlin. Minus the crash, it had been an amazing moment.

His hand holding hers had felt so good, so natural even. Like it was meant to be. And then his fingers interlaced with hers.. Ziva gasped as she suddenly saw his fingers moving slightly.

She was hallucinating, she was sure of it. But she could feel it, feel his fingers move. Slow and weak but the movement was still there. She sat up straighter and watched in amazement as his fingers moved.

It looked like he was desperately trying to interlace their fingers. She was so focused on their hands that she didn't see his eyes flutter open the slightest bit. It was only when his raspy voice cut through the silence of the room, that her head shot up and she covered her mouth with her hand as sobs racked her body.

"_Ziva_."

* * *

**A/N: I warned you! I cried writing this! :O :'( BUT HE'S AWAAAAAAAAAAKE! :))  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section! :) LOVE to hear from you xo  
I'm not entirely sure whether I'll update tomorrow.. I have another important exam coming up this week, so yeah.. But I'll try of course :)  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: I'm so sorry for the wait! I've been incredibly busy with school, exams and stuff! :( Anyway, here it is :))  
Warning: I tend to make Chapter 12's kinda emotional and..yeah :D (see "Our Summer" :D) So...kleenex would probably be a good idea :D  
Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

* * *

"Tony", she whispered, her voice cracking. He was fighting to keep his eyes open but Ziva's heart skipped a beat nevertheless. His deep green eyes took her breath away quite literally.

God, how she'd missed looking into those eyes. He was still trying desperately to interlace their fingers and Ziva smiled softly at him. She patted his cheek lovingly while helping him in his struggle.

Their fingers interlaced and Ziva let out a soft sigh. It felt so good to have that kind of physical contact with him again. She noticed his sigh of relief as well and smiled even wider.

"I should probably call a nurse", Ziva said eventually, her hand still cupping his cheek. "No", he whispered weakly. "Tony, you need to be checked out. It is necessary", she insisted.

"No", he repeated, his voice stronger now. She brushed a strand of hair from his face and he closed his eyes, leaning into the contact. "Don't leave me", he eventually managed to whisper in a very raspy voice.

She gasped. "Tony", she said gently, unable to form any sentence. Tears were pooling in her eyes. "I..know you're not..you're not really there", Tony stated, trying to keep his voice up, "so, please at least give me some more..time."

His words tore her heart apart and tears spilled from her eyes. She squeezed his hand ever so softly. "I am here, Tony. Can you feel my hand?", she asked. Tears were pooling in his eyes as he nodded carefully.

She leaned closer to his face. "I came home to you. I am not going to leave you ever again", she whispered. Their lips were almost touching now. "I love you", she mumbled before softly pressing her lips to his.

She felt him relax and smiled into the kiss. As much as she'd have loved to kiss him forever, she knew he needed medical attention. So, she gently broke the kiss and smiled at him.

"I am going to call a nurse now. But I will not leave your side. Okay?", she suggested. He nodded, his eyes wide. Ziva pressed the button next to his bed and only seconds later, a nurse came into the room.

"He is awake", Ziva announced, smiling brightly. The nurse's facial expression relaxed and she approached the bed. "It was about damn time", she commented.

* * *

After the nurse had left the room again, Ziva turned to Tony. He smiled at her brightly and she couldn't help but smile back. After the nurse had given him something to drink, he'd been able to talk much better and to be honest, he looked a lot better than he had ten minutes ago.

"So, want to tell me again why you're back?", he asked. "Because I love you", she said, shrugging like it was no big deal. He slapped her arm halfheartedly. Mostly because he didn't have the strength to actually slap her yet.

She laughed. "It is true", she defended herself. He laughed along with her although it sounded more like coughing. "The real reason, Ziva", he demanded when their laughter had died down. She sighed.

"I was not ready to come back yet. I had not even thought about it to be honest", she admitted. He inhaled sharply. "Your neighbor and friend, Isabelle. She came to Israel after you had been..shot. She told me about your condition and asked me to come with her", she went on but Tony cut her off: "Isabelle went to Israel to bring you here?"

Ziva nodded and continued: "When I heard what had happened, I packed my things immediately and got on the next flight. I needed to be here with you." "But you're not here to stay, are you? If I hadn't been shot, you wouldn't be here right now", he stated bitterly.

She squeezed his hand that she was still holding. "I told you I am not going to leave you again", she repeated her earlier statement. "Ziva, I can't ask you to stay here if it's not your own free will", he sighed.

"Do you not know I love you?", she asked, eyebrows furrowed. He was quiet, so she continued: "I am here to stay, Tony. When I got on the plane, I wasn't sure whether I was ready and I still do not know. But I know one thing for sure. I need you by my side, in my life. I.." She trailed off, looking down.

"You what, Ziva?", he demanded immediately. Much like all those months ago on the tarmac, he wasn't letting her off the hook so easily. "I realized that I cannot live without you", she whispered, afraid of his reaction.

She had never been someone to share their feelings openly and let their emotions take over. But with him it was different. She knew she needed to be honest in order to make this work. Even if it meant being incredibly scared.

She felt Tony's hand on her cheek and looked up into his eyes. "I've missed you so much", he whispered, gently bringing her face closer to his. "I've missed you too", she said just as quietly before closing the gap between them in a kiss.

"Can you promise me something?", he whispered as they broke the kiss. "Anything", she said without a second of hesitation. "Promise me you won't leave me. Promise me you'll stay. Promise me you won't push me away again. Promise me to let me in", he requested.

She kissed his lips again. "I promise", she whispered four times, sealing each promise with a kiss. "Good. Because I don't think I can handle loosing you again", he admitted. She smiled sadly.

"I am sorry for what happened last year. I did not mean to push you away. It was just..", she tried to explain but trailed off as her voice cracked. "Hey, I get it. Things were getting too much. I wish you had let me help you. But I understand, Ziva. I really do", he assured her, his hand cupping her cheek.

She closed her eyes, getting lost in the feeling. "I love you", he said. A strangled sob escaped her throat. She'd said it twice already but he hadn't said it since he'd woken up. It felt so good to hear him say it.

Those three little words that she'd been longing to hear during all the long and lonely nights in Israel. She rested her forehead against his, inhaling his scent. "You're home", he whispered in awe. She chuckled and squeezed his hand. "Yes, Tony. I am home", she confirmed. And God, did it feel _right_ to be _home_.

* * *

**A/N: awwwwwwww TIVA! *insert heart that FFN won't let me do :D*  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section! :) I looooove to hear your thoughts on this! :)  
Thank you for all your lovely reviews, favorites, follows, comments, tweets and eeeeverything! YOU ROCK xo  
I hope I'll be able to update tomorrow! :)  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**

P.S. Christmas is cloooooooooose so if you have any Christmas fic/drabble requests, now's the perfect time to send them in! :)


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Sorry for the wait agaiiiin I was just freaking busy this week :/  
Anyway, here it is :) You're gonna have a love-hate relationship with this chapter/me after this chapter probably :D But yeah :D (nooo, Tony and Ziva don't break up LOL :D)  
Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

* * *

"He's asleep", Ziva whispered as she saw Gibbs enter the hospital room later that day. She hadn't left Tony's side ever since she'd arrived at the hospital in the morning.

And she wasn't planning on leaving without him. She would stay here, no matter what. Gibbs smiled sadly. "He has been for days", he stated. Ziva furrowed her eyebrows.

"Did nobody tell you?", she asked as Gibbs approached the bed, pulling a chair up next to her. "Tell me what, Ziva?", he questioned. "He woke up a couple of hours ago. He is fine. He was just exhausted, so he went back to sleep about ten minutes ago", she explained.

Gibbs' eyes widened. He obviously hadn't known. "That's great news", he stated and she smiled brightly. "Yes, it is", she agreed. They were silent for a while and Ziva settled her gaze on Tony's sleeping form again.

He looked much more peaceful than he had a few hours ago. She felt Gibbs' stare on her hand that was still holding Tony's but decided not to pay attention to his gaze. If he had something to say, he might as well say it.

And he did: "Ziva, I need to know something." She turned her head to look at him and nodded, signaling him to continue. "Are you here to stay?", he asked bluntly. She sighed. She should have seen that question coming.

"Yes, I am here to stay. I will not leave again", she promised. "Good. And if you ever break his heart again, you'll have me to answer to. Understood?", he told her sternly.

She gulped but nodded. She could understand where Gibbs was coming from after all. From what Isabelle had told her on the flight to DC, Tony hadn't been doing good at all. And it was all because of her.

"I did not mean to hurt him or any of you. I thought I was doing the right thing", Ziva apologized. Gibbs smiled at her reassuringly. "I know you were. But you could have at least contacted us every now and then", he stated.

She nodded, her gaze focused on the bed. She didn't dare to meet Gibbs' eyes. "We were all worried about you. And we missed you", he told her, making her smile. "I missed you too", she replied.

They were silent again. "Do you think the others will be mad that I showed up here without any preamble?", Ziva eventually voiced her concerns. Gibbs chuckled. "Nah, they'll be happy to see you", he assured her and she let out a sigh of relief.

Ever since getting on that plane in Israel that had been her greatest concern. If Gibbs said it'd be okay, then it would. She trusted his judgment. "Do you think you're ready to be here?", Gibbs asked. She shrugged.

"I do not know. I thought I was not but when Isabelle came to my house, I suddenly felt like going home was the only reasonable thing to do. It all happened so fast", she said.

"You're not sure whether you'd come home if this hadn't happened", Gibbs stated as if reading her thoughts. She nodded, almost ashamed of herself. "Ziva, you wouldn't have gotten on that plane if you weren't ready. You knew what this meant", he told her.

She bit her lip. He had a point there. She had known what this meant from the very beginning. She knew she couldn't just come to DC for a vacation. It was all or nothing. And she had settled for all.

"You are right. Maybe I am not completely ready but I am sure, you will all support me", she said. Gibbs smiled at her. "Of course, we will", he assured her. "Where are you gonna live?", he then asked.

"We have not talked about it yet. But I am assuming I will live with Tony", she replied. "He's not gonna let you go", Gibbs chuckled and she laughed along with him. It was true. Tony would probably not let her out of his sight. Not even for a night.

"I need a job though", she stated carefully. She didn't want to talk Gibbs into anything but she knew he would be able to see through her. So, his reply would hold a double-meaning. It would be a reply to her question and the unspoken question.

"I can't decide that, Ziva. You know that", he said. She let out a sigh of relief. At least he hadn't ruled out the possibility of bringing her back on the team. "I would like to come back to NCIS, to the team. But I also heard about the new Agent. I do not want her to be fired", Ziva stated.

"Have you met Ellie yet?", Gibbs asked. Ziva's heart ached as she heard Gibbs referring to the new Agent by her first name. But then again, he referred to all females by their first name and to all males by their last name.

It was just what he did. McGee, DiNozzo, Palmer versus Abby and Ziva. And then there was Ducky but that was a whole different story. So, she shouldn't exactly be surprised by the use of the new Agent's first name.

"No, I have only been here after all", Ziva said, shrugging. "How about I send her here, so you two can talk? I actually think it would help her too. She's been struggling a bit", Gibbs suggested.

Ziva nodded slowly. "Okay", she then agreed. It was worth a shot. And what could go wrong after all? "After you talked to her, I will talk to Vance about the whole thing", Gibbs promised.

Ziva smiled brightly. "Thank you, Gibbs", she said, her voice conveying her happiness. "Do you wanna go to my place, take a shower? I'll stay here with him", Gibbs offered after a moment of comfortable silence.

Ziva shook her head. "No, I will stay here", she said firmly. Gibbs chuckled and held up his hands in surrender. "Okay, got it. Well, I'll go back to work then. I'll send Ellie over", Gibbs said, then got up.

Ziva smiled up at him as he kissed her forehead. God, how she'd missed those tiny gestures. It was such a fatherly gesture and she loved it. "Tell DiNozzo I said hi", Gibbs called over his shoulder as he reached the door.

Ziva nodded: "I will." Gibbs smiled back at her but her gaze was already focused on Tony's face again. Things were finally beginning to feel normal again.

* * *

**A/N: awww Gibbs and Ziva :)  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section! :) LOVE to hear from you guys xo  
I have no idea when the next chapter will be up but I hope tomorrow ;)  
Thank you for all your amazing reviews, follows, favorites, comments, tweets and messages! YOU ROCK! :)  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Tadaaaaaaa! :D I'm veryyy happy to have the new chapter up today :)  
Thank you for all your kind reviews, follows, favorites, comments, messages and tweets! I LOVE YOU ALL! :) xo  
I loved writing this chapter and I reaaaaaaaally hope you like reading it :))  
Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

* * *

"Hey", Isabelle said softly, poking her head into the room. Ziva smiled brightly. "Hello Isabelle", she greeted her. Isabelle walked over to the bed and smiled down at Tony.

"I heard he woke up", she stated and Ziva nodded enthusiastically. "I told you he just needed you", Isabelle said, nudging Ziva in the side. Ziva laughed. "And you were right", she admitted.

"Hey, listen, Ellie is waiting outside because Gibbs told her to come and speak to you. I'll stay here with Tony and you'll be right in front of the door. Is that okay?", Isabelle asked.

Ziva bit her lip, thinking about it for a second before nodding. "Okay", she agreed. She leaned forward and kissed Tony on the forehead. "At lo levad", she whispered, smiling softly.

She wasn't sure whether he'd heard her but his nose twitched adorably, making her smile even wider. Isabelle took Ziva's place next to the bed as Ziva made her way outside where Ellie was already waiting for her.

* * *

Ziva spotted Ellie immediately. She looked exactly how Isabelle had described her. Young, blonde, kinda quirky. She was nervously walking up and down the corridor and Ziva just stood there, watching her amused.

Eventually Ellie bumped into her and looked up, her eyes wide in shock. "I'm so sorry, I was just..", she started to apologize. However, she trailed off when she got a better look at Ziva's face.

"You're Ziva, right?", she asked. Ziva smiled and nodded, extending her hand for her to shake. "I'm Eleanor Bishop but everyone calls me Ellie", she introduced herself. Ziva smiled at her warmly.

There was just something about her that made her like her. "I am Ziva David, it is nice to meet you", Ziva said. Ellie eyed her for what felt like an eternity. She had no idea how to approach her.

She didn't have any idea why she was here in the first place after all. Gibbs had just told her she should go to the hospital to talk to Ziva. Well, here she was. But she still had no idea what this whole thing was about.

"How about we sit down for a second?", Ziva suggested eventually, pointing to the chairs in front of Tony's hospital room. They sat down and Ziva pulled her chair over to face Ellie. "How's Tony?", Ellie asked carefully.

"He woke up a couple of hours ago but he is now asleep. He is very exhausted", Ziva explained. Ellie bit her lip and nodded, looking everywhere but at Ziva. "I'm very sorry", she apologized quietly.

Ziva's eyebrows furrowed. "You have nothing to be sorry for", she stated, confused. "Yes, I have", Ellie mumbled. Ziva leaned forward, resting her arms on her knees. "And what would that be?", she asked gently.

She wasn't sure what this was about but telling from Ellie's body language, it was really bothering her. A lot. "It's all my fault. I'm his partner, I was supposed to have his back out there and I failed", Ellie whispered, her face buried in her hands.

Ziva sighed and rested her hand on her shoulder in a comforting manner. "It is not your fault", she assured her quietly. Isabelle had warned her about Ellie's feelings of guilt.

She hadn't understood it from the beginning but now here she was, forced to assure a girl she barely knew that she in fact didn't do anything wrong. "It is my fault! Everyone thinks so", Ellie stated bitterly.

"Nobody thinks so", Ziva tried to tell her but Ellie wasn't even listening to her. "You should have seen Tony's face when the bullet hit him. And McGee's eyes, Gibbs' stare. Abby's practically ignoring me as well", Ellie admitted, sighing.

Ziva touched Ellie's knee. "Will you look at me for a second?", she requested softly. Ellie did as she was told and slowly lifted her head, locking her eyes on Ziva's.

"Why do you think it is your fault?", she asked. "You would have had his back. This wouldn't have happened if you'd been his partner. I'm just a horrible partner", Ellie voiced her concerns.

Ziva chuckled. "Ellie, this could have happened if I was his partner as well. I was never a perfect partner either", she told her, smiling at her reassuringly. "Really?", Ellie asked, her eyes wide.

Ziva nodded, patting her knee. "Do not beat yourself up over this. It is not your fault. And he does not think it is your fault either. Nobody does", she assured her. Ellie was silent for a while, not meeting Ziva's eyes again.

Ziva sensed there was something she wanted to say but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. Before she had the chance to ask though, Ellie spoke up: "I feel like I'm not a good Agent." Ziva sighed deeply.

Now she knew why Gibbs had sent her here. She was supposed to either tell Ellie she could do it or use it to her advantage to get her job back. Looking into Ellie's eyes though she knew her answer. She couldn't use Ellie like that. She didn't deserve that.

"You are not", she said firmly. "Who do you know? You weren't here", Ellie said bitterly. Ziva smiled softly. "No, I was not. But I was the new one too at some point", she explained.

Ellie suddenly seemed to understand and nodded, signaling Ziva to go on. So, she did: "When I first joined NCIS, it was very hard for me to fit in. I was not used to working on a team. I used to work alone before I joined NCIS."

Ellie's eyes widened. "Me too!", she exclaimed, happy that someone was finally able to relate to her situation. "Abby hated me at first. She was really giving me a hard time. Everyone else was not exactly happy about me being there either. Especially when I tried to claim that desk", Ziva confessed.

"Oh God, they really have a thing for that stupid desk, don't they?", Ellie exclaimed, rolling her eyes. Ziva laughed and nodded. It was true after all. And it was funny to see that Ellie had had the same problem. The team seriously had a thing for that desk. No kidding.

"I always thought it was because the Agent before me had died but apparently they really have a thing for that desk", she joked but Ellie shook her head. "I think it was worse that you weren't dead but just gone. That was what bothered them all the most", she admitted.

Ziva took a deep breath. She knew it had been hard on everyone but she was just starting to realize how hard it had been exactly. "Anyway, you are not a bad Agent, Ellie. I am sure of it. You just need some time to adjust", Ziva eventually said.

Ellie bit her lip, obviously deep in thought. "Maybe I'm not a bad Agent. But I've had almost a year to adjust and I'm still not comfortable. I feel like..this is not the right job for me", she stated carefully.

Ziva looked at her confused. She hadn't expected her to say that. "I mean I love to analyze the crimes and come up with possible scenarios and that helps the team a lot. At least I think it does. But I'm not really the type of person to carry a gun and go out in the field or interrogate people", Ellie went on before Ziva even got the chance to reply.

Ziva was stunned to say the least. Where was this coming from? "You know, I love to work on the floor. And I eat when I work because I food-associate. Everyone is so confused by my work attitude but it works for me. I don't know, it's just..me", Ellie continued.

"And being an Agent is not you?", Ziva asked softly. Ellie shook her head. "I don't think so. I mean, I thought it was. I applied to NCIS years ago and I was so excited when Gibbs offered me the job. But I realized it's..it's not what I want. It's not who I am, you know?", she rambled.

"I know all too well what you are talking about", Ziva stated sadly. Ellie looked at her curiously, obviously waiting for an explanation. "I do not know how much they told you about me. But last year my father was killed. It was just the strawberry on top of everything", Ziva started.

"You mean cherry, right? Cherry on top?", Ellie asked, smirking. Ziva laughed. "Yes, sorry. I have lived in America for over eight years and still get confused by the idioms", she confessed.

Ellie chuckled, then signaled Ziva to continue with her story. "A lot has happened in my life and some things I am not very proud of. So, last year I went to Israel to explore my roots, try to find myself again, get a clean slate, you know?", Ziva went on.

Ellie nodded in understanding, so Ziva continued: "I made a list of things I wanted to achieve in life. The very first item on the list was 'I will let go of the badge'."

"But that's not what you want anymore, is it?", Ellie assumed. "No, it is not. I miss my job. I thought it was never my free will to become an Agent but it is who I am, what I want to do. I want to help people by catching the bad guys", Ziva told her, smiling at the phrase Tony had taught her all those years ago.

Catching the bad guys. It had somehow grown on her. _Tony_ had grown on her. Ellie leaned forward in her chair. "You told Gibbs about this, didn't you?", she asked. Ziva nodded slowly. What was Ellie getting at?

"I kind of hinted I wasn't comfortable with my job", Ellie went on. Ziva's eyes widened. "That is why Gibbs wanted us to talk to each other", she exclaimed. Ellie nodded enthusiastically.

"Listen, I think I have an idea", she then said. Ziva leaned in and nodded, signaling her to tell her. "You wanna be back on the team, back in the field. And I wanna get outta there but still kinda help with cases", Ellie summarized and Ziva nodded.

"How about you get your desk back and take your position as a Field Agent again while I stay on the team as an Analyst? I'd work on the floor between your desks and help you with the theoretical stuff of the cases and you go catch the bad guys", Ellie proposed.

Ziva's eyes widened. That girl was genius! "That sounds amazing!", she exclaimed. Ellie leaned back in her chair and smiled triumphantly. "Well, what can I say? I'm a brilliant analyst", she said and Ziva laughed.

"You are", she agreed. "I'll go talk to Gibbs. You better stay with Tony. Tell him I say hi", Ellie then said, getting up and leaving immediately. Ziva looked after her, shaking her head while laughing. She was indeed kinda quirky. But she actually liked her a lot. She reminded her a bit of Tali.

* * *

"Isabelle?", Tony asked in a raspy voice, opening his eyes. Isabelle grinned at him. "Hey there, sleepy head", she teased. He sat up a little straighter and smiled at her.

Then he looked around and grew a little panicked. "Where's Ziva?", he asked and Isabelle noticed his heart monitor beeping. "She's just outside, talking to Ellie. Don't worry", she tried to soothe him.

He lay back down and took a deep breath. "Thank God", he mumbled. Isabelle smiled at him softly. Yeah, her trip to Israel had definitely been worth it. "You brought her home", he then whispered.

"Yes, I did", Isabelle confirmed, grinning. "I can't thank you enough, Belle. You did use your Tink Powers after all", he said and Isabelle laughed. "I got your message, yes. And you're very welcome. I told you every cloud has a silver lining", she replied.

He smiled: "And you were right. Every cloud does in fact have a silver lining."

* * *

**A/N: I love Ellie okay? :D And hey, Isabelle is back :)  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section! :) Love to hear from you guys :) xo  
I'm not sure whether I'll have a new chapter up tomorrow. I'm super busy on Mondays :/ But I'll try :)  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: I'm very sorry for not updating yesterday. As some of you might have already read on twitter or facebook, I got some pretty bad news last night. My friend P. (the one I told you about during "Our Summer") is going back to the clinic. Her depressions are worse again and she has fear of failure. She told me last night at fencing pratice and I really wasn't in the mood to upload a new chapter afterwards. This just really sucks and I wish she wouldn't have to go through that again. It's not fair. I really thought she was doing better and now this happened. Please, pray for her. And if you don't pray, please keep her in your thoughts. Thank you xo  
So, anyway, as you all know writing is my form of escape (like Tony's escape are movies). Therefore, I really really reeeeally felt like writing today. A lot. (I'll end up writing a novel these days lol)  
Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

* * *

"Ziva", Tony exclaimed happily as Ziva walked back into the hospital room. She smiled at him brightly and walked towards the bed. "Did you sleep well?", she asked softly, touching his cheek lovingly.

"I did. But I'd sleep even better if you were in my arms", he replied cheekily. She laughed. "How much medication did they give him?", Ziva asked, turning her head to Isabelle.

"They weren't here yet", Isabelle replied, laughing along with Ziva. Then she stood up from the chair, sensing that they needed a minute alone. She hugged Ziva tightly.

"Thank you for everything", Ziva whispered into her ear. Isabelle pulled back and smiled at her. "That's what friends do", she stated, winking at her. Before Ziva could reply, Isabelle had walked out of the room.

Ziva smiled after her but her gaze quickly landed on Tony again when he grabbed her hand. "I missed you", he told her. "I was only gone for a couple of minutes", she said, chuckling.

He patted the space next to him, inviting her to lay down with him. She eyed the small space critically but eventually shrugged, took her shoes off and carefully slipped under the covers next to him.

She didn't even question his motives. She knew it wasn't comfortable for him, especially seeing as he was still suffering from his bullet wound. But she also knew he needed to feel her physical presence.

And truth be told, she needed him just as much. He shuffled a bit until she was nestled into his side as comfortable as possible in the small bed. He kissed the top of her head and she closed her eyes in contentment, resting her head on the good side of his chest.

She was afraid she'd hurt him but she also knew that he would be upset if she'd hold back. So, she settled for being close but careful. "Isabelle said you were talking to Ellie out there", Tony eventually stated, obviously expecting an explanation.

"I did. She is very nice", Ziva replied, trying to ignore the topic. She didn't want to get his hopes up in case Gibbs and Vance didn't approve of their plan. Ellie had promised to text her when she knew more and Ziva wasn't planning on telling Tony before that.

"What did you talk about?", Tony pushed. Ziva bit her lip, trying to come up with something, anything. "We talked about the sacred desk", she eventually replied, shrugging nonchalantly.

"The what?", Tony questioned, confusion written all over his face. "She feels uncomfortable at work because that desk is sacred to all of you. Apparently you did not make her feel welcome. And that happened to me too, remember?", she explained.

Tony flinched and she bit her tongue, wanting to take back her words. "I never..", Tony started to apologize but Ziva pressed her finger against his lips, effectively silencing him.

"I know you never intended to hurt anyone. And I was not saying that. All I am saying is that Ellie and I talked about our experiences at NCIS as a new Agent and I think it helped her a lot", Ziva explained, smiling at him softly.

He smiled back at her. "Does she feel uncomfortable?", he eventually asked. She nodded slowly. "Yes, but I think she is on the right track now", she replied. "Okay", he said simply, obviously content with her answer.

They were silent again, just enjoying each others' company. Her hand came up and gently traced his jaw, his chin, his cheek. "I love you", she whispered suddenly, her eyes locked on his. She felt his hold tighten on her.

"I love you too", he said, his voice muffled by her hair. She'd missed hearing those words. And God, she'd longed to hear them during those long and lonely nights and days in Israel. Why had she not come home sooner?

"Ziva?", he asked, shifting again to get a better look at her. "Yes?", she whispered, her fingers still ghosting along his jaw and face. "You're here to stay, aren't you?", he questioned and her heart stopped for a second.

Him asking her repeatedly made her realize just how much her absence had hurt and affected him. And she hated it. She couldn't stand that she'd been the reason for his heartbreak.

"Of course I am. There is nowhere else I would rather be", she assured him, her voice strong. "Then don't leave me. At all", Tony pleaded. She smiled softly and brushed a strand of hair out of his face.

"I assumed you would say so. That is why I have not looked for apartments yet", she admitted, smiling shyly. A huge grin spread across his face. "Will you..will you please move in with me?", he asked, his voice cracking.

She assumed it was partly because of his excitement and partly because of his nervousness. Without another word, she leaned closer to his face, her lips hovering above his.

"What do you think?", she asked in a very low voice. He swallowed hard and a shiver ran down his spine. "Is that a yes?", he managed to ask in barely above a whisper.

"It is a yes, yes, yes", she murmured, closing the gap between them in a soft kiss. He relaxed into the kiss, his lips moving in sync with hers. He would never be able to get enough of her.

God, how he'd missed her, how he'd missed having her so close, being able to touch her, kiss her, hold her, tell her how much he loves her. As they pulled apart both were breathing heavily.

Ziva gazed at Tony's heart monitor and chuckled. "I have quite the effect on you, yes?", she teased and he smirked. "You do indeed", he admitted, resting his forehead against hers, taking in her scent.

"This still feels like a dream", he eventually mumbled almost inaudibly. However, she did hear it. She pushed herself up on her elbow and looked at him. "It is not a dream. I am here and I will stay. I came home to you, Tony", she assured him.

It still hurt like hell to hear him talk about it like that. He obviously still didn't believe she was really there. Before he could say anything, her cell phone beeped signaling a new message.

She quickly pulled it from her pocket and looked at the display. It was from Ellie. An attached picture showed her in front of Director Vance's office, grinning and giving her a thumbs-up.

Ziva had to try hard not to chuckle. She really did remind her of Tali. 'Who's the genius?', the message underneath the picture read. Ziva bit her lip to keep herself from grinning like an idiot.

It had worked. Now all she needed to do was go to NCIS and talk to Vance herself. Only how was she going to do that without having to tell Tony about everything? She wanted to have the papers when she told him. And damn it, she was going to find a way to make it work.

* * *

**A/N: YAYYYYY :D Ziva's moving in with Tony and ELLIE'S MESSAGE :)))  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section! :) Love to hear from you xo  
I hope I'll be able to update again tomorrow :) I'm kinda in a flow here :D  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: I'm sooo sorry it took so long! :( I was busy, then I didn't know what to write, then I was busy again and now I finally managed to get it done haha :D Anyway, this will most likely be the last chapter of 2013 for "Silver Lining" (I'll try to get chapter 4 of "Jamaica Dreamin'" up before the year ends haha), so THANK YOU for reading my stories in 2013 and being awesome! All the best for 2014 and happy New Year to everyone who already celebrated the New Year (New Zealand anyone? :D) :)  
Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

* * *

With shaking hands Ziva stood in the elevator at NCIS headquarters. She was on her way up to the bullpen to meet the others for the first time in one year and to talk to Vance and Gibbs about her and Ellie's plan.

She'd hated to leave Tony's side but seeing as he was asleep and she needed to do this, she had eventually been able to actually get up and make her way to NCIS.

However, if Isabelle hadn't offered to stay with Tony, she would have probably not left him. Ziva took a deep breath as the elevator came to a stop and the doors opened, revealing the familiar orange walls.

It was ridiculous but she'd actually missed the weird color. Slowly she made her way over to the bullpen only to find it empty. Well at least she'd have time to figure out what to say to the others.

She wondered if they already knew she was in DC or if they had no idea. And God, she wasn't sure which option she preferred. Probably none of them. They'd either be pissed that she hadn't come and seen them earlier or they'd be offended she hadn't told them she was there in the first place.

And either way, they'd definitely confront her about her decision of staying in Israel. Ziva sighed. She really wished Tony would be there with her right now. He'd hold her hand and tell her it'd be okay.

And he'd jump in for her if the others asked questions she wasn't comfortable with. He just knew her so well. It literally made her heart ache to be away from him again. Even if just for a few hours. It just didn't feel right. She needed him by her side. Permanently.

"There you are!", someone suddenly exclaimed, pulling Ziva from her thoughts. She turned around and smiled brightly when she saw Ellie running towards her. She hugged her close and Ziva giggled.

"It worked!", Ellie said happily and Ziva nodded against her shoulder. She was very glad it had worked as well. She couldn't wait to tell Tony. "Gibbs and Vance want you to come upstairs. But only in like..an hour", Ellie told her.

"An hour?", Ziva asked, getting uncomfortable again. She shouldn't have left Tony. Especially not that long. "He'll be fine", Ellie assured her as if reading her thoughts.

"Maybe..you could use the hour to visit the others?", she then suggested carefully. Ziva sighed deeply. She knew she needed to go and see the others eventually.

But she'd somehow hoped she could delay it forever. It wouldn't be easy after all. "Where are they?", she eventually asked. Ellie smiled brightly. "Well, Ducky and Jimmy are in autopsy and McGee is downstairs with Abby", she told her.

Ziva took a deep breath and nodded. She decided to start with Abby and McGee, seeing as that would be more difficult. She wanted to get that out of the way first.

"I will see you at the Director's office?", Ziva asked and Ellie nodded, waving after her. Ziva got on the elevator and headed down to the lab. This was gonna be a challenge. The first 'real' one since coming back to DC.

* * *

"Abby?", Ziva called out carefully as she walked into the lab. She looked around but couldn't see Abby or McGee anywhere. Perhaps they had left? Ziva walked further into the room and smiled as she came to a stop in front of Abby's "baby" Major Mass Spec.

Just as she reached out her finger to trace it along the machine, someone behind her coughed loudly. "Don't you dare touch him!", Abby exclaimed. Ziva froze, her hand dropping to her side.

Her heart was beating wildly and she was actually afraid to turn around. Maybe if she just ducked her head and ran out of the room..? But then again, if she wanted to stay and even work here again, she would have to face them eventually.

Slowly she turned around, raising her head. As her gaze settled on Abby and McGee, her breath caught in her throat. She had really missed them. Their eyes widened as they realized who she was.

Abby took a small step forward, her hand extended, shaking. "Zi-Ziva?", she whispered in complete awe. Ziva smiled at her softly, yet carefully. She wasn't sure how they'd react after all.

Once the initial shock wore off, they could still get furious and yell at her. How was she supposed to know? "Yes", she confirmed, nodding. "You're a ghost, right? You can't be real", Abby said, her voice still barely above a whisper.

"I am real, Abby", Ziva assured her. "But..I..you..", Abby stammered and McGee finished the thought for her: "Why are you here?" Somehow Ziva couldn't shake off the feeling that there was a hint of accusation in McGee's tone.

She bit her lip, trying to keep her emotions at bay. Now wasn't the time to cry. She didn't want their sympathy but their real forgiveness. "Isabelle came to Israel and told me about Tony's condition. I could not stay away. I had to come", she explained.

"So, it took Tony getting shot for you to finally realize that staying away wasn't the best idea?", McGee asked, the accusation now more than evident. Funny. She'd expected Abby to be accusing, not McGee.

"I..you are right. It was the wrong decision. But I thought I was making the right one", Ziva admitted, not meeting his eyes. The room was awfully silent for a while and Ziva had the sudden urge to run away and never look back.

But she knew she couldn't. If she wanted to work here again she needed to stand up for her wrong decisions and answer everyone's questions. There was no other option.

"So, what happens next? You just wanted to see Tony, you're gonna wait until he wakes up and then leave again?", McGee asked bitterly. Ziva squeezed her eyes shut. She wouldn't cry. Not now.

"He is already awake", she whispered eventually. Silence. Had she said the wrong thing? Had they expected her to call them when he woke up? But then again, Gibbs could have told them as well. He had known for a while now.

"Why didn't you call us?", Abby asked softly and Ziva was shocked to see tears pooling in her eyes. "I-I am sorry. But I thought Gibbs would tell you. I did not want to tell you that I was back over the phone. I wanted to talk to you in person", she tried to justify her actions.

"Gibbs knew?", Abby whispered, obviously upset that he had left them out of the loop. Ziva didn't say anything. It felt wrong to make it seem like Gibbs had made a mistake. He would have his reasons, she was sure of it.

"And what happens next?", McGee repeated his earlier question. However, before she was able to say anything, McGee spoke up yet again: "Are you just gonna hop on a plane and go back to Israel and not contact anyone again? Are you just gonna leave him again, break his heart again? Make it even worse?"

Ziva inhaled sharply. Maybe she really hadn't realized what her leaving had done to all of them. McGee was the closest to Tony and he probably knew what he'd gone through since last summer.

Obviously it had been even worse than she'd thought, even worse than Tony himself had admitted. "McGee!", Abby exclaimed in shock. Obviously she hadn't anticipated his outburst either.

"Abby, it is fine", Ziva tried to soothe her. She didn't want them to argue as well. She didn't want to cause more hurt period. "I am here to stay. I will not leave again. I will live with Tony. But not because I forced it on him but because he offered, he wants me to", Ziva explained firmly.

McGee's features softened visibly and a smile spread across his face. "That's good", he commented, nodding. She smiled back at him. "Where are you gonna work?", Abby asked.

Ziva bit her lip. She couldn't tell them yet. She needed to be one hundred percent sure. "I do not know yet. But I have started looking", she instead replied. It wasn't really a lie. She had started looking but she didn't know whether it would really work.

Abby took a step closer to her and then pulled her into a bone-crushing hug. "I have missed you", she whispered into her ear. Ziva smiled brightly. "I have missed you just as much", she replied quietly.

And it was true. She had missed her. All of them. She caught McGee's gaze over Abby's shoulder and he sent her a reassuring smile. Yes, it was good to be home.

* * *

"Ducky?", Ziva called out carefully as she stepped into autopsy a little later. Abby and McGee had eventually let her go when she'd said she didn't have much time but wanted to say hi to Ducky and Palmer.

Ducky walked around the corner and a huge smile spread across Ziva's face upon seeing him. His eyes widened and he picked up his face, stopping right in front of her.

"So, it's true", he said. She smiled at him. "Who told you?", she asked. "Abigail called just a few seconds ago. She was so excited. And now here you are. And may I say, you look better than ever, my dear", Ducky said, making Ziva blush.

"Thank you, Ducky", she said softly. "I'm afraid Mr. Palmer is not here at the moment. He said something about a family emergency I believe. But if you do not mind, I will let him know about the good news once he is back", Ducky told her.

"Of course. I just wanted to come and see you. But I do not have much time", she replied regretfully. She wished she had more time to talk to Ducky. She had missed talking to him because God, he always found the right words.

Ducky tilted his head to the side and gave her a questioning look. "What are you hiding, Ziva?", he asked. God, he was worse than Gibbs sometimes. How did he know everything?

"Nothing", she quickly said. Perhaps_ too_ quickly. He smirked and continued to stare at her until she eventually threw her hands up in frustration. "Fine. But you cannot tell anyone", she requested. He nodded.

"I have a meeting with Director Vance and Gibbs in ten minutes. I assume you can guess what it is about", she admitted almost shyly. Ducky smiled brightly. "Well, that sounds wonderful, my dear. Let me know how it went before you leave, will you?", he asked and she nodded.

Of course she would let him know. But maybe not immediately. Tony deserved to know first. Somehow, she knew Ducky wouldn't mind though. He'd understand.

"Ziva!", someone suddenly exclaimed and Ziva turned around to find Ellie standing in the door frame, hands on her hips. "I've been looking for you everywhere! Our appointment is in like ten minutes and we can't be late, silly!", Ellie rambled immediately.

Ziva chuckled. "I was just about to take the elevator down to the bullpen. You are too impatient, Ellie", she replied. She turned to Ducky who was smiling even wider upon seeing the exchange between the two of them.

Obviously he was happy that they got along well. "I will see you later, my dear", he said, nodding. She smiled, then followed Ellie out the door. She knew that the next minutes could change everything. And God, was she looking forward to it.

* * *

**A/N: yaaay :)  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section :) I love to hear what you think and I'm always open for suggestions :)  
Thank you for your incredible support in 2013! xo HAPPY NEW YEAR and all the best for 2014! xo  
Next chapter will be up next year (haha I love saying that lol)  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: HAPPY NEW YEAR! :) xo I hope 2014 is everything you wished for :)  
Here's a new chapter - yay! :) We're getting closer to the end ;) BUT we still have a couple chapters to go ;)  
Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

* * *

"You ready?", Ellie asked as they stood in front of Vance's office.

Ziva took a deep breath and nodded. Truth was, she was more than nervous. But now wasn't the time to show her nervousness. Now was the time to stand up for her dreams. She wanted this. And she was gonna fight for it. Ellie knocked on the door and they walked in. Director Vance's secretary told them to proceed and so they slowly approached the door. Ellie smiled up at Ziva and she smiled back. This was it. There was no going back now.

* * *

"There you are", Gibbs said as Ellie and Ziva walked in.

"Miss David, it's good to see you again", Vance greeted Ziva.

She smiled at him. "It is good to see you, too, Director", she replied.

"Please, have a seat", he told them and the two women sat down at the conference table.

"If I understand correctly, you want to come back to NCIS as a Field Agent. Is that right, Miss David?", Vance asked, getting straight to the point.

"Yes", Ziva confirmed, nodding.

She exchanged a glance with Gibbs who nodded at her reassuringly. It was looking good so far. At least Vance hadn't said anything negative yet.

"Are you sure this is what you want? You did leave the agency for a reason, did you not?", Vance questioned.

Ziva swallowed hard. Did he need all the details or would a brief summary do? One look at Gibbs told her what she needed to know. Details were required here. She took a deep breath.

"I resigned from NCIS along with Agent DiNozzo and Agent McGee, taking full responsibility to protect Agent Gibbs", she started, trying to be as formal as possible which was weird considering that they were basically her family.

"Agent DiNozzo and Agent McGee took their jobs back at the end of the summer", Vance stated.

"I know. However, I could not. I needed some time..for myself. But I am convinced that I am ready to be a Field Agent again and I would like to re-join this team", Ziva explained.

"I see", Vance said simply.

Ziva shifted in her seat nervously. God, couldn't he at least smile? She hated the business-Vance. A lot.

"Agent Bishop, we are talking about your position here", Vance then stated, his gaze now resting on Ellie.

"I am well aware of that. We talked about this yesterday, Director. I'm looking for a change and I would be content with Ziva taking the position I now have on the team", she replied.

"So, you are resigning from NCIS?", Vance questioned.

Ellie shook her head. "No, I would like to continue working for NCIS. However, I would like to work as an analyst instead of a Field Agent", she explained.

"Agent Gibbs, do you need an analyst on your team?", Vance questioned.

Gibbs smirked and looked back and forth between Ziva and Ellie.

"What do you think?", he questioned, smirking.

Vance chuckled. Obviously he had seen that one coming. It was a typical Gibbs move after all. No matter how business-like everyone else was behaving, Gibbs would never do so.

"Well..there are only four desks", Vance stated but it sounded more like a question.

What were they gonna do about that? Ellie grinned at Ziva. Thank God, they already had a plan. It was probably a good thing they'd worked out the logistics before coming here.

"I don't need a desk. I can work anywhere. I could even work on the floor", Ellie said.

Ziva noticed Gibbs chuckle. Obviously he'd had fun with Ellie in the past months, trying to convince her to work at a desk and try to appear a bit more professional.

"I can't let you work on the floor of the bullpen, Agent Bishop. Safety reasons", Vance told her.

Ziva's face fell. What now? However, when she looked at Ellie, she didn't seem crushed at all. In fact, her eyes were sparkling even more.

"No problem. I can either work behind one of the desks that are next to the bullpen. The one next to McGee's desk or the one next to Gibbs' desk. Or I could work in the backroom of Abby's lab", Ellie suggested.

Vance exchanged a look with Gibbs, clearly waiting for his opinion.

"If McGee doesn't mind, we could just remove that wall next to his desk so Ellie's desk is kind of part of the bullpen. But I like the lab option as well. I'm sure Ellie and Abby would make a good team working out the forensics and analyzing the crimes", Gibbs said.

Ziva was surprised to hear Gibbs say so much at once. Usually he would have just used a few words. But apparently he had either changed over the past year or he was really, really trying to make this work, to get her back on the team. She smiled softly.

"I think one of these two options can be arranged. NCIS Analyst sound good to you, Agent Bishop?", Vance asked, pushing a folder across the table.

Ellie opened the folder and grinned. Inside was the paperwork to become an NCIS Analyst. Vance pushed a pen across the table and Ellie immediately grabbed it and signed the last page.

"Thank you, Director", Ellie said, grinning as she pushed the folder back to Vance.

He took it and put it on the table next to him. There was another folder to his right and he rested his hand on top of the folder.

"Gibbs, are you okay with Miss David rejoining your team?", Vance asked, never taking his eyes off Ziva.

"Hell yes!", Gibbs said firmly, making everyone in the room laugh.

"Miss David, before I give you the paperwork, there is something I need to know", Vance stated.

"Of course", Ziva replied immediately.

It couldn't be that bad. It was probably just a formality. Nothing major.

"I need to know about your personal relationship with Agent DiNozzo", Vance said.

Ziva was completely caught off guard. She stared at Vance before her gaze landed on Gibbs. Obviously he hadn't been expecting that question either because he looked as surprised as she felt. Was this a trick question? Would Vance not allow her to work for NCIS when she told him about her relationship with Tony? Would that get in the way?

"With all due respect, Director, but there is no paragraph about personal relationships between Agents in the guidelines of NCIS", Ellie suddenly said.

All eyes were on her but she didn't seem to be fazed by it. She simply shrugged and looked at Vance.

"It's true. You can't do anything about it", she explained calmly.

God, was she looking for trouble? Both Tony and Isabelle had been right when they'd told her about Ellie. Sometimes she really didn't know what was okay to say and what wasn't.

"Very true, Agent Bishop", Vance eventually said, nodding.

Ziva's jaw dropped. Had she heard correctly? He wasn't mad at Ellie for being so straightforward and telling him no? In fact, he was okay with it?

"Gibbs, does your rule about team members dating still apply?", Vance instead asked.

Oh, so that was what he was getting at. If there was no rule in the NCIS guidelines, at least he could still point out Gibbs' rules. He really didn't want her here, did he?

"It does", Gibbs confirmed and a smirk appeared on Vance's face.

Ziva's eyes began to water and her hands were shaking by now. What the hell was going on? Just five minutes ago everything had been fine. This couldn't just be about her relationship with Tony. This was about her. She was sure of it.

"Just not to those two. I don't care that they're dating. It's about damn time. The second it influences their work, they'll have me to answer to", Gibbs suddenly said and finally, Vance's smirk changed into a genuine smile.

He pushed the folder across the table and with shaking hands Ziva opened it. Inside wasn't an application or anything of that kind. There was only one paper. It was a contract. Vance wasn't making her apply again, he wasn't making her go through any stupid procedure. Instead, he was simply giving her her job back just like he'd offered last summer. She took the pen that was still laying in front of Ellie and signed at the bottom of the page.

A huge grin was plastered on her face when she pushed the folder back across the table for Vance to take.

"Congratulations, Special Agent David. You are officially part of the team again", Vance said, smiling brightly.

He stood up and shook Ziva's hand, then Ellie's.

Ziva turned to Gibbs and he was smiling at her softly. Without a word, he pulled her into a fatherly hug and kissed the top of her head.

"It's good to have you back, Ziver", he whispered in her ear.

She smiled softly and hugged him a little tighter. Yeah, it was good to be back.

* * *

**A/N: Hey, don't hate me for that little Vance moment in there. It's all good now ;)  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section! :) LOVE to hear from you guys xo  
I hope I'll have a new chapter up tomorrow but I still got a ton of school-work...soo I dunno :D  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Aaaaand I'm back with a new chapter :) yay! :D  
Please enjoy reading! :)  
**

* * *

"Ziva?" Tony called out, looking around slightly panicked.

Her hand was not holding his anymore and he couldn't see her anywhere.

"Relax, Tony. She'll be back in a minute," Isabelle said, coming into his line of view.

He exhaled and relaxed visibly. Carefully, he sat up straighter in bed to look at Isabelle. It was funny. Every time he woke up and Ziva was gone, Isabelle was there. Ziva had probably arranged that as to not make him panic or worse. Which meant she cared. And he liked that. A lot.

Isabelle smiled at him. Thank God, Ziva had called her and asked her to stay here. She knew Tony wouldn't have handled it well if nobody had been there when he woke up. Especially not while he still wasn't too sure whether Ziva was a dream or not. Saying she'd be back in a minute wasn't even a lie. Ziva had indeed texted her, telling her she was on her way back to the hospital about ten minutes ago.

"How are you feeling?" Isabelle asked.

"A lot better. Really. And I can't wait to get out of this stupid hospital bed," Tony told her.

She chuckled. Yeah, that was the Tony she had gotten to know over the past year. Someone who faced his problems and refused to accept them. He had been shot in the chest for God's sake and still all he could think about was to finally get out of the hospital. Only Tony would have that train of thought.

"You need to relax, silly," she replied.

He shrugged. "I can relax at home."

"With Ziva," Isabelle added, smirking.

"That's a bonus," Tony admitted, grinning right back at her.

He would probably never be able to thank her enough for bringing Ziva home for him. But he knew she understood. Isabelle had known what she'd been doing when she'd went to Israel for him. And really, he was proud to call her his best friend. Seeing as Ziva was more than just his best friend now.

"Isabelle, is he..," Ziva's voice suddenly cut through the air.

Tony quickly turned around to look in the direction where her voice had come from. A huge grin spread across his face as he saw Ziva walking through the door.

"I see you are awake," she said softly as she approached the bed.

She handed Isabelle a cup of coffee and then leaned closer to him. Seeing as he was already in a sitting position, she didn't have to lean in far to reach his lips. She kissed him on the lips quickly. Too quickly for his liking.

"Are you feeling okay?" she asked as she leaned against the wall.

He raised his eyebrows. She was behaving really strange. Like she was hiding something from him. Something major. Only what could it be?

"I am," he replied hesitantly.

"Are you?" he then questioned carefully.

She immediately pushed away from the wall and took a step closer to his bed. For a second, he could swear he saw panic flash across her face but then she smiled at him sweetly and took his hand in hers.

"Of course I am," she assured him.

He would have questioned her statement further but he wasn't sure whether that would have been the best idea. Isabelle was still in the room after all. And maybe she wasn't supposed to hear whatever it was that Ziva was hiding? Because God, she was definitely hiding something.

"I'll come by again later, okay? I need to do some stuff for college," Isabelle spoke up, obviously sensing the tension.

Ziva smiled at her, then pulled her into a tight hug.

"How did it go?" Isabelle whispered into her ear, making sure not to move her lips a lot, so Tony wouldn't notice.

"Perfect," Ziva whispered back, being just as careful.

She hadn't intended to tell anyone before she told Tony but then again, Gibbs knew, Vance knew, even Ellie, a person she barely knew, knew. And it wasn't like Isabelle would tell Tony that she knew first. Nor would Tony mind that Isabelle knew. Ziva was pretty sure of that. And honestly, she didn't feel like lying to Isabelle. She had helped her a lot after all. She deserved to know the truth, especially if she asked.

Isabelle grinned at her as she pulled away from the hug. She thanked Ziva for the coffee and then quickly left the room, leaving Tony and Ziva to finally talk about things.

Tony looked up at Ziva, his eyes telling her that he wanted to know what was going on. She sighed and sat down on the chair that Isabelle had occupied just seconds ago.

"What's going on?" Tony asked, needing to know the answer.

"Tony, I..," she started but trailed off when her cell phone suddenly rang.

She held up her finger. "One second."

"David," she answered her phone.

"Agent David, I'm glad you picked up," Vance's voice sounded over the line.

Ziva stood up and quickly made her way to the other side of the room. "What is it?"

"You sound rather panicked. Is everything alright, Agent David?"

She squeezed her eyes shut and ran a hand over her face. "I am at the hospital."

"Oh, I see. I take it you haven't told Agent DiNozzo yet?"

"You would assume correctly."

"Well, I was just calling to check about the date you will start working again."

"Yes?" Couldn't he be more specific?

"When would you like to start working again?"

Damn it. Now how was she supposed to reply without Tony knowing what was going on? She could literally feel his gaze on her.

"I..," she started but Vance cut her off: "I'm sorry. You can't say it out loud obviously."

Huh, apparently he had noticed his mistake. And apparently he understood. Which was very unlike Vance. Not that she was complaining of course.

"So, I assume you don't want to start right away, seeing as Agent DiNozzo is still not fully recovered," Vance went on.

"Yes. If that is possible," she replied carefully.

"Of course it is, Agent David. I'll just put the date you want on the forms and it's done. I talked to Agent DiNozzo's doctors today. He will be able to come back to work in September. In about ten weeks."

"Okay." Really, what else was she supposed to say?

"I assume you still need to work some things out seeing as your homecoming was rather spontaneous. How would you feel about starting on September 15?"

She gasped but immediately tried to cover it up by coughing. "Really?"

"If you want to that is. I assume you could use some time to get settled again. And maybe Agent DiNozzo could use some company during his physical therapy."

"I suppose so."

"Then it's settled? You start again on September 15?"

"Yes."

"Well, I'm looking forward to it, Agent David. And let me say, I would be very pleased if you came to visit your former and future colleagues during the ten weeks."

"I will," Ziva promised.

"I will talk to you soon, Agent David," Vance said, then hang up.

Ziva smiled brightly. It felt good to be called Agent David again. She had indeed missed it. Maybe she just hadn't noticed how much she loved the badge and the title until she'd given it up. And yeah, that was the thing. You don't know what you have until you lose it. Same went for Tony. She turned around and her gaze immediately landed on him.

"Who was that?" Tony asked.

She walked over to the bed again and took his hand, interlacing their fingers.

"That was..," she started but was cut off yet again when a nurse walked in.

"I'm sorry for interrupting but the doctor sent me to tell you that the tests this morning came back very positive. You are allowed to go home, Agent DiNozzo," the nurse said.

Tony grinned brightly and Ziva couldn't keep the smile off her face either. She squeezed his hand tightly.

"Now?" Tony asked and the nurse chuckled.

"The doctor will be here in a few minutes to speak with you. But yes, you can start packing your bags," she said, winked at them and then left the room again.

Tony grinned at Ziva. "Take me home?"

* * *

**A/N: Take me homeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee HELL YES! haha :D  
Please let me know what you think, what could be improved and what you wanna see in future chapters in the reviews section! :) I LOVE to hear what you think :)  
Thank you for all the kind reviews, follows and favorites :) I love youuuu xo  
This story will come to an end pretty soon... Sorryyyyyyy :D  
Next chapter will be up as soon as possible ;) Perhaps even tomorrow :)  
Love y'all,  
~ C.**


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